Phyllis Elaine Rasmussen was born April 7, 1923 in Mankato, MN. She passed away September 13, 2021 in Burnsville, MN. She was the daughter of Eliza Hall Olson and N. Herman Olson. When Phyllis was 10 days old her mother passed away. Phyllis was baptized and brought to Balaton to make her home with her aunt and uncle, Anne and Fred Bartlett. Anne Bartlett was an older sister of Eliza. The Bartletts had two grown daughters, Rachel and Maude who, at the time, were students at Gustavus Adolphus in St. Peter. St. Peter was the home of Herman and Eliza. Phyllis became and was a member of the Bartlett family for all her life and could not have been raised by a better family. Her older twin brothers, Harold and Howard remained living in St. Peter with their father.
Phyllis graduated from Balaton High School and attended Hamline University, graduating in 1945. She returned to Balaton and married Richard Rasmussen on July 1, 1946 after Dick came home from serving with the US Army in the South Pacific. Dick was the son of Dr. Hilmer and Roberta Rasmussen. Phyllis and Dick raised their three sons, Tom, David and Craig in Balaton. All three attended Balaton schools and graduated from there. Phyllis was a lifelong member of the United Methodist Church and United Methodist Women. She taught school in Balaton for several years and also was a substitute teacher after that. She worked at Schwan’s Sales in Marshall for 16 years. She liked all sports and was an avid fan of the Gophers, Twins and Lynx.
Phyllis and Dick had been married over 60 years when he passed away in 2007. They had a special bond and marriage. They were inseparable and rarely did they spend a night apart. Phyllis remained in the Bartlett House after Dick’s passing and then moved to an apartment in Balaton. After two years she moved to Apple Valley, MN to be near her family. A leg injury caused her to move to Carefree Living, an assisted living facility and eventually to Ebenezer Ridges Care Center in Burnsville due to failing health.
Phyllis is survived by her three sons and families: son Tom and wife Linda (River Falls, WI), son Dave and wife Sue (Eagan, MN) and son Craig and wife Janice (Bethesda, MD), grand-daughters Kari (Dan Beutz), Molli (Noah Wise), Rachel, DVM (Mike Brugger), grandson Mark, and 7 great grandchildren Lillian, Robbie, Leah, Ritchie, Miles, Elliot and Zoey. A special niece Ann Jarvela lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado.