Laura Mae Bloomquist

Laura Bloomquist, 92, of Willmar, died Wednesday, July 30 at her home. Her funeral service will be 11:00 am, Friday, August 8 at Harvey Anderson Funeral Home in Willmar. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service. Burial will be at Roseville Cemetery in Hawick. Arrangements are with Harvey Anderson & Johnson Funeral Home in Willmar. www.hafh.org

Laura Mae (Jones) Bloomquist was born June 24, 1933, on the family farm in Hawick to Fred and Helen (Ferrier) Jones. Laura was baptized on April 18, 1948, at the Hawick United Methodist Church, alongside five of her siblings. She attended elementary school at District I in Hawick—a one-room schoolhouse with one teacher and approximately 20 students. She later graduated from Paynesville High School in 1950.She began working as a secretary to the Head of Special Services Department at St. Cloud State College (now St. Cloud University) in 1951.

In September 1951, she moved to Willmar. She worked in the insurance department at the Bank of Willmar, Willmar Investment Co. It was there she met her future husband, Gordon Bloomquist, who was serving in the Navy at the time. After his discharge, they began dating and were married on June 4, 1955.

He worked for RCA Service Co. at an Aircraft Control and Warning Base in Wadena, while working with the Air Force as a civilian. At that time, they lived in Verndale, MN. As he transferred to other bases, they lived in Dresser, WI., Waverly, IA. and Duluth, MN. In 1966, he left the employment of RCA and began teaching Electronics at the State School of Science in Wahpeton, N.D. At that time, they didn’t have summer classes, so they purchased North Breeze Resort on Diamond Lake near Atwater, which they operated for 50 years.

Laura worked at several jobs in the winters. - in the kitchen of Bethesda, for J & D Laundry, they were both night cleaners at Holiday Inn, and did temp work at Maracom.

They had four children, and were devastated by the murder of their son, Allen, in 1997.

They sold the resort in 2017, and moved to Kandiyohi.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Gordon; their son, Allen; brothers, Keith, Larry, Melvin, and Charles; and sister, Muretta.

She is survived by their sons: Wayne (Paulay) and Ron (Valorie); and their daughter: Valerie (Jeff) Lawler; grandchildren: Kyla (Brandon) Larsen, Tisha, Baylie, Logan, and Matthew Bloomquist; great grandchildren: Shawn Bloomquist, Lydia and Eliza Larsen, Henry Bloomquist and Chloe Warburton; sisters: Margaret, Ruth Ann and Emma; and brother: Don.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Laura Mae Bloomquist, please visit our floral store.