Lori Ann Torbenson

“Torby”   “Oreo”

Born 12-10-1955  Mpls, Mn    Born into Eternal  Life 4-20-2026  Mpls, Mn

She was  loved deeply  every single day of her life.  Died 16 months after a diagnosis of Pancreatic carcinoma. She will be missed beyond words by her older sister Lynn, & brother-in-law Bob.  Survived by dear friends, 9 cousins and their children, and her beloved feline companion of 19 years, Scout.

  She was born at Northwestern Hospital, daughter of Henning “Nebbs” Torbenson & Marion “Scotty” Torbenson.  She was a blend of Italian, Norwegian and Scottish ancestry & spent her Sundays growing up with la famiglia , dinners with Gramma Mayme, Aunts Isabel & Pasqua & Uncle Tony, enjoying homemade pasta dried over a broom handle in an 10x10 kitchen in NE Mpls. Journeyed frequently to her Scottish grandparents in Wadena, MN, Hugh & Ruth Williamson Parker where she learned to garden at an early age & came to love small town MN and the sounds of trains coming in late at night.

She graduated from Southwest High School Class of ’73 with Honors & was proud to have played in the State High School Girls Badminton tournament.  She graduated from Normandale Community College with a degree in Hospitality Management and met several lifelong friends there who continued to share deeply in her life as part of a birthday group who still meet to enjoy one another. She used her gift for hospitality in several local hotels/resorts including the Normandy, Roadway Inn, Breezy Point & the Marriot.  She used to love to make her cold calls on vendors at the Minnesota State Fair to entice them “Up North” to Breezy Point.  She also gained knowledge in the printing /ad agency industry by working with a friend at Colours and finished her career at US Bank in the direct marketing dept.  What an eye for detail! She was an employee par excellence and when earned the Pinnacle Award @ USB for her stellar performance, she treated her sister to the reward trip to San Francisco. She had a work ethic that was legendary.

  Summer cross country road trips with her family sparked an interest in travel. After several years of organizing trips for Fortune 500 companies to Europe for MotivAction, she enjoyed planning many trips to Europe  with her Mom and older sister. Her first trip to  London was richly rewarded by a wave from Princess Alexandra  on her way to the Guildhall and hearing Prince Phillip address a surviving contingent of WW2 Ghurkas outside the Ministry of Defense.  Her second trip was well rewarded by standing with a group of diplomatic Bobbies watching the Duke of Kent landing in the  royal helicopter on the polo fields of Kensington Palace.  Hat trick!   The only mountain she would ever climb was in Stirling Scotland, where she paid homage to William Wallace, her Mother’s hero, long before any Hollywood producer had considered  filming Braveheart.  She was an independent traveler who found her way from De Gaulle airport to Versailles where she enjoyed a 40th Anniversary celebration trip with sister Lynn & Bob, eventually spending the week together in Paris and then touring the Loire valley and Burgundy by car. She put on many miles in Rome and was humbled to get close to Pope Francis in St. Peter’s square, just months before his death.  She loved  visiting Germany, cruising the Rhone & Rhine rivers, driving through  Austria and Bavaria  and had a pilgrimage to Jerusalem scheduled just before the war broke out. Her celebratory trip for retirement was an island hopping cruise to Hawaii  and she cherished the ritual family trip to Lake Superior.  She was an ideal traveling companion, always curious about the politics , history and culture of the area she was visiting. She was both a great pilot & navigator, in many areas of her life.

A lifelong learner, she was an enthusiastic participant in Jim Klobuchars “Football for Women” and enjoyed watching the Vikes trounce ‘da Bears’ in the Old Soldier Field Stadium…until the Bears fans started throwing beer and hot dogs on 120 Minnesota women! She was an avid and loyal Vikings fan who always looked forward to the next season no matter how dismaying the season might have been. Now she has the best seats in the house and is no doubt whispering advice into the coaches’ ears.

She often said if she had to do it again she would’ve followed her interest in politics more closely as a career choice.  She had a keen eye for social justice and a well-honed radar for intolerances. She was unapologetically a single cat lady who adored her kitties and always hoped to marry an older man. She became a staunch vegetarian after watching Food, Inc. and provided many years of fabulous veggie sides to our holiday tables, enjoying cooking for her family just like her Gramma.   She discovered pickleball after her retirement and wow, was she ever good! Her Lynhurst /WP pickleball cohort was a very special enrichment to her life, as was her Thursday cribbage group.

But her lodestar was her Catholic faith, family and friends. She was unfailingly trustworthy, loving and tender hearted. She was blessed with unwavering integrity, was sincere, doggedly persistent and a loyal friend. She was compassionate, objective, smart and funny, self-effacing, curious and helpful.  She could always listen patiently to the other side and immediately present cogent arguments for both, using her signature humor. She is irreplaceable in so many hearts, and leaves a legacy of love, strength, grace and gratitude. Special thanks to the Blessed Virgin Mary for prayers answered.

Mass of Christian Burial at Annunciation Catholic Church 509 West 54th St  Mpls Mn  Thurs, May 7th at 11 AM with visitation one hour prior.  Interment immediately following at Lakewood Cemetery, with a Memorial Reception following interment at the Lakewood Garden Mausoleum.

The family requests no flowers please.  Memorial gifts can be directed to the De La Salle Tuition assistance fund.