Mae Viola Thompson O'Neal
May 2nd, 1920 to November 28th, 2012
A beautiful tiny baby girl, Mae Viola Thompson was born to George Arthur and Caroline Thompson on May 2, 1920, on their farm in Hartland Township.
Mae was confirmed and baptized at the Hartland Lutheran Church in Hartland, MN, attended country schools in both Hartland & Manchester townships & also Freeborn High School. Her Norwegian ancestors were of the people that built the churches of N. Freeborn County.
Mae shared fond memories of her childhood & cold wintry sleigh rides home from Grandparents, Bertram & Betsy Sybilrud's farm, located N. of Hartland, and also of picking raspberries and gooseberries as she walked through the woods of her Grandmother Arslog Thompson Lee's farm, located on the N. shore of Mule Lake.
Mae was an accomplished musician with the wonderful gift of being able to play anything she heard on the piano. Many fun evenings were spent gathered around her at the piano as she played while friends & family sang the popular tunes of the era. Her Families love of music, her great sense of humor, their strong Christian faith, believing in doing what was right and showing support for each other, brought her & her Family through the Great Depression, World War II and life.Mae married Harry O'Neal in 1937, and together they made Albert Lea their home until 1961. Because of Harry's promotion by Wilson & Co., the family relocated to Cedar Rapids, IA, where their seventh child Rod was born. Mae called & wrote often to the friends and family she left behind in MN, always expressing her love and concern for them. She & Harry always took time for their family & others, no matter how busy they were. Together she and Harry, who were married 6 years, made many trips with their family back to MN to visit Family.
She became a fantastic seamstress with the ability to design & sew for her children & neighbors, formals, wedding dresses, costumes, coats, sports wear, hats & whatever was needed.
As a member of First Lutheran Church, in Albert Lea, Mae taught Sunday School, and sewed choir gowns. She and her husband Harry also sang in the adult choir & for weddings.
Her unquenchable thirst for knowledge had her constantly taking courses in philosophy & spirituality. She became a “student of Life” who was found capable of channeling God's healing powers to those who believed. She obtained a Masters Degree in Reiki Healing. Mae helped many people by taking them into her home & also by sharing her knowledge of healing by faith, correct thought & proper nutrition. In her later years she spent much of her time in meditation & prayer, teaching her children & others to put the things we could not handle into God's hands, saying, “let go & let God” and “this too shall pass”. She was also a strong advocate of positive thinking, fairness, kindness, forgiveness & understanding.
She & her teachings will be in our hearts forever.
Thank You Mom
She was preceded in death by: her parents, Art & Caroline her husband Harry in 2001, Grandchild Lindsey Dahl, her brothers: Arvel, Jim, George, Vernon & Elvern Thompson, Sisters: Alice (Harry) Rosenthal &Clarice (Ben) Henrichs, Brothers- in-Law: Harry Rosenthal, Ben Henrichs, Leo O'Neal & Milt Nelson; Sisters-in- Law: Winfred, Pauline, & Bernice Thompson.
She is survived by her children: Patricia (Frank) Gjersvik of Manchester, MN, Carol (Dennis) Colstrup of Albert Lea, Steve O'Neal of Wasilla, AKA, Kathy Toms, Kevin (Deb) O'Neal, Rod (Shelley) O'Neal of Cedar Rapids, IA & Luanne (Bill) Watts of Los Angeles, CA.; Grandchildren: Kris (Ross) Dahl, Terry (Darah) Gjersvik, Neal (Lisa) Gjersvik, MN, Bill (Andrea) Gjersvik, Cheryl (Mike) Yauger, Judy (Dick) Hoiseth, Danny Colstrup & friend Christine Bolinger, Tim (Anne) Colstrup, Jennifer (Chad Gardner), Shannon (Gina) O'Neal, Shane (Rhonda) Toms, Jason (Angie) Toms, Allison (John) Jacobs, Rachel (Roy) Tamayo & Kyle Jaycox, Isaac Watts, and Hailey & Logan O'Neal; Great-Grandchildren: Gretchen, Taylor, Bryce & Graham Dahl, Hannah, Lars & Grace Gjersvik, Harry, Lilly & Noah Gjersvik. Langdon Gjersvik, Nicholas & Anthony Hoiseth & Tarah Hoiseth Larson, Michelle Parker, Carrie, Mikey & Andy Yauger, Soren & Eric Colstrup, Beau & Abe Gardner, Brennan, Lexi & Alisa O'Neal, Sawyer Toms & Tyler Andrews, Ella & Luke Toms, Olivia & Benjamin Jacobs, Julia, Maya and Rio Tamayo, and Jamison O'Neal; Great Great Grandchildren: Oliver & Hali Dahl, Haaken Dahl, Brandon & Hailey Parker, Gage Studier& Neveah Hoiseth, and Chambers Hoiseth; Brother Harold Thompson & his wife Helen, Brother-in-Law Roger O'Neal, Sisters-in-Law Bernice O'Neal, Blanche O'Neal, Florence (George) Thompson and Florence (Elverne) Thompson.
Many caring nieces & Nephews also survive her .
Her family & those who knew her will dearly miss her.