Barbara Schansberg

Obituary of Barbara Schansberg

Barbara Schansberg of Delano, Minnesota passed away September 24th
following a courageous battle with multiple myeloma. Born in 1942, she
grew up in a small farmhouse near Hawarden, Iowa. Her father was a
bookkeeper and tenant farmer, her mother a homemaker and store clerk.
She was baptized and confirmed at Trinity Lutheran Church in Hawarden.

After high school, Barb moved to Omaha to attend business school.
After graduating, her first job was administering security clearances
at Offutt Air Force Base. It was there that she met James Reed. They
married in 1962, raised four children and divorced in 1975. Barb moved
to Watertown, Minnesota, where she worked as a bookkeeper for several
area businesses, including many years at Bremer Bank. She met Phil
Schansberg at Trinity Lutheran Church in Watertown. They were married
in 2001. For the next nineteen years, they led a life devoted to their
combined families, community involvement, fun with friends and
relatives, travel and the congregational lives of both Trinity and
Peace Lutheran churches in Watertown.

Barb retained her country roots, with a strong love for the outdoors,
gardening and cooking. Favorite recipes included her one-of-a-kind
apple butter. She loved music, studied piano and shared her musical
talents in many church choirs. She enjoyed spending time with her Red
Hats friends and absolutely loved playing bridge. While a farm girl at
heart, she also loved water. She skied, fished, boated and enjoyed
ocean cruises immensely. Barb was also a talented writer, contributing
those skills to countless church bulletins and decades of cleverly
rhymed annual family Christmas letters.

She is survived by children James, Michael (Lucinda), Matthew (Bonnie)
and Ann Reed; step-children Craig (Jeanne), Derek and Kristine
Schansberg; grandchildren Geoffrey (Lisa), Jordan and Megan Reed;
Julia, Cole, Madison and Devin Schansberg; Kaden, Carly, Kellyn and
Carter Paulson; great-grandsons, Elliott, Evan and Noah Reed; brother
John Peterson (JoAnne), and many nephews, nieces, cousins and in-laws.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Roland and Pearl Peterson,
sisters Gladys, Mary Rehder (George), Alice Yates (Stanley), and Janet
Anderson Stewart (Floyd), brothers Glenn and Eric, and husbands James
Reed and Philip Schansberg.

Visitation will be from 4:00 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday, October 2 and
10:00 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Saturday, October 3, followed by a
celebration of life and resurrection at Peace Lutheran Church in
Watertown, Minnesota. The service will be livestreamed on Peace
Lutheran’s Facebook page.

A Memorial Tree was planted for Barbara
We are deeply sorry for your loss ~ the staff at Cremation Society of Minnesota