Shirley Sylling

March 3, 1920 - March 19, 2018

Shirley Sylling of Spring Grove passed away on March 19, 2018, at the Gundersen Tweeten Nursing Home in Spring Grove, MN, at the age of 98. Born Shirley Christianson in Hettinger, ND, on March 3, 1920, to Oliver and Maybelle Christianson, she grew up in the little town of Homer, MN, near Winona. She graduated from Winona High School and earned a teaching certificate from Teachers College after two years of study. She taught school for four years, first in two one-room country schoolhouses in the area, then in Caledonia, and finally in Spring Grove where she met her future husband. Shirley married Alfred Sylling on June 18, 1944, and together they raised two sons, John and Charlie. She was active in Trinity Lutheran Church activities including Ladies Aid, Dorcas, and Circle, and she taught Sunday School for many years. She took great pride in serving on the Spring Grove School Board, the first woman to do so. Shirley was a homemaker who loved to golf, garden, read and play bridge. She served on the Ma Cal Grove Golf Course Board, and she served as a scorekeeper for many golf tournaments. She continued to play bridge and eucher with many friends well into her 90s, even after she lost her sight. Shirley and Al, her husband of almost 70 years, hosted many family reunions and Homecoming gatherings in their back yard. Shirley is survived by her son Charlie (wife Candyce) of Camano Island, WA. Al and Shirley had three grandchildren: Kjersten (Jim) Woodward of Normal, IL; Emily Sylling (Rhys Williams) of Bristow, VA; and Andrew (Lauren) Sylling of Trumbull, CT. She has four great grandchildren: Sasha Williams (Seattle, WA); John Woodward (Normal, IL); and Caroline and Samantha Sylling (Trumbull, CT). She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Al, her son John, and her sister Wilma. The family extends our sincere gratitude to the many neighbors and friends who have shown Al and Shirley so many kindnesses in the later years of their lives. The family requests that donations and memorials be made to the Trinity Lutheran Church in Spring Grove or to Gundersen Tweeten Health Center in Spring Grove.