Ruth M. Oleson

Ruth Marilyn Oleson was born May 30, 1923, to Walter and Amy Anderson at Milford, Iowa and attended school and graduated high school in Milford in 1941. Ruth's father started the Terrace Park Dairy, processing and delivering milk, and also owned a coal and feed business and also manufactured cement products in Milford. After graduating high school Ruth attended business college at Waldorf College in Forest City, Iowa. World War 2 interrupted her college plans. Ruth married her high school sweetheart, Normand Oleson on June 1, 1943 and moved to Long Beach, California where Norm worked in defense production during the war at Cal-Shipyard where he helped build Liberty ships that transported soldiers and critical war materials to the European war fronts. During this time, Ruth worked at a produce and grocery company in Long Beach. Later during the war Norm worked at Shell Oil Company of San Pedro, California. At that time, Shell Oil Company of San Pedro refined and produced the majority of crude oil used to support the United States Navy during the war. After the war, Ruth and Norm worked through Fuschsia-La Nursery in Long Beach doing landscape work for affluent clients in Southern California. In 1951, Ruth, Norm and Ruth's father, Walter Anderson, started A & O Liquor Store and Delicatessen in Aresia, California. In 1955, Ruth and Norm expanded and built a larger very modernistic structure for their business. In 1968, Ruth and Norm sold A & O Liquor Store and moved back to Milford, Iowa and purchased a home, acreage and lakeshore property that had been in the family for 108 years. During this time Ruth and Norm extensively remodeled the family home that Ruth's grandfather had built and in semi-retirement Ruth did community volunteer work and delivered Meals on Wheels. In 1971, Ruth, Norm and Don started a business called Lakes Maintenance Unlimited, doing landscape maintenance. In 1975, Ruth, Norm and Don started Iowa Great Lakes Nursery in Arnolds Park and expanded and moved the business to Spirit Lake, Iowa in 1977 having a Nursery, Landscape, Garden Center, Floral Shop and Greenhouse Range. The business grew beyond their greatest expectations. Ruth and Norm sold Iowa Great Lakes Nursery in 1990 and again semi-retired. At this time, Ruth and Norm enjoyed worldwide travel that included Europe, Australia and New Zealand. In 1993, Ruth helped Norm and Don develop a residential development at Lake Okoboji called 'Greenwood Estates'. Ruth also helped her son Don immensely in the development of 'Oleson Landscape & Design' in the Lakes Area. Ruth loved doing anything that involved being together with Norm including hunting, fishing and traveling. She was an excellent homemaker, loved to cook and enjoyed her gardening. Ruth and Norm shared a loving 64 year marriage. Besides her husband and family, her passion and love for the past 43 years was mowing and care of her 10 acre lawn and its 750 oak trees. Her greatest enjoyment was helping design the "Leisure Oaks" family memorial dedicated to Norm. She will be dearly missed by her family. Ruth passed away Friday, August 2, 2013 at Lakes Regional Healthcare in Spirit Lake at 90 years of age. She is survived by her two sons, James Alan and his wife, Karen and Donald Scot; two grandsons, Patrick and Scott.