St. Hilaire – Lynnae Sue Toren, 61, of St. Hilaire, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, March 13, 2024, at Sanford Medical Center in Fargo, ND, with her loving daughter, Jesse, by her side.
Lynnae was born on June 9, 1962, in Thief River Falls, the eldest daughter of Ervin and Mary (Bowen) Ness. She was baptized into the Christian faith and confirmed at First Lutheran Church in Middle River. Her family lived briefly in Thief River Falls, Middle River, Union, IL, and East Bethel. In 1973, they settled on the Ness family farm near Middle River.
She grew up as a farm girl and fondly remembered helping her father Ervin bale hay, doing fieldwork, raising beef cattle, and riding her horse. She graduated from Middle River High School in 1980 and received an accounting certificate from the Thief River Falls Area Vocational Technical Institute in 1982.
On September 19, 1981, she married James (Jim) Toren at the First Lutheran Church in Middle River. They welcomed their daughter, Jesse Lynn, in 1984.
Lynnae worked for various businesses, including Middle River Tax Service, Falls Decorators, the VFW Post 2793, Seven Clans Casino & Hotel, Super-One Foods, Northland Taxi, Walmart, and Kruise In. Throughout her career she made numerous friends and had many fond memories of their shared experiences.
Lynnae was a kind soul who would help anyone she could. She had a gift of being non-judgmental and was willing to give anyone a chance. She loved to be around people and really enjoyed a good conversation whether it was in person or over the phone. She had a happy-go-lucky spirit and the persona that everything would work itself out.
As a green thumb, planting flowers, gardening, and tending to her houseplants brought her joy. She also enjoyed baking, canning, reading, crocheting, fishing, rummage sales, bingo, and game shows. One of her favorite adventures was taking a road trip with her daughter Jesse through South Dakota, stopping at Mt. Rushmore on the way to Denver. They also enjoyed a second road trip to Seattle. But most of all, she loved spending time with her granddaughter Amari! Being Amari’s Nana brought her so much joy. Every moment with Amari, in person or on the phone, was special to her.
She is survived by and will be forever missed by her loving daughter, Jesse Lynn Toren and granddaughter Amari Hope Toren of Maple Grove; sister, Kelly (Mark) Koland of Karlstad; brother, Kenneth Ness of Middle River; nieces, Brenna (Jason) Braunhausen of Bemidji, Morgan (Austin) Hams of Karlstad, and Claire (Trevor) Koland-Berreau of Thief River Falls; great-nephews, Ridge and Tate Hams; great-niece, Teagan Koland-Berreau; and special friend, Shawn Cherland of St. Hilaire; extended family members and friends.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Ervin and Mary Ness; her life partner, Loren (Lonnie) Steigen; and her fur babies, AJ and Harley.
Lynnae will be deeply missed by those who knew and loved her. May her memory be blessed and live on through her family and everyone she impacted. She would remind everyone, “Don’t Worry Be Happy!” May she rest in peace.
A celebration of life service to honor Lynnae will be on Saturday, June 8, 2024 at 2 p.m., with visitation one hour prior at Johnson Funeral Service in Thief River Falls.
Condolences may be sent at www.johnsonfuneralservice.com.
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