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A Celebration of Life for Ardys J. Manzey, age 83, of Northfield, Minn., and formerly of Trimont and Sherburn, Minn., will be at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 17, 2025, at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Sherburn, Minn. Burial will follow at Sherburn City Cemetery.
Visitation will be held from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday, May 16, 2025, at the Kramer Family Funeral Home in Sherburn and will continue for one hour prior to the service at the church on Saturday. Those wishing to view the service may do so by going on St. John’s Lutheran Church Facebook page or the following link: www.sjlsherburn.com/livestream.
Memorials are preferred to www.alz.org
Ardys passed away on Tuesday evening, May 6, 2025, at Benedictine Living Community in Northfield.
Ardys Joan (Baker) Manzey was born on April 16, 1942, to Andrew and Rena (Bosma) Baker on a farm near Ocheyedan, Iowa. Her parents enrolled her in first grade at age 4 with her older brother at Holland Christian School, which meant she graduated when she was 16 from Verdi High School in 1959. The summer after graduating, her mom put Ardys in the car for a “trip” — to Sioux Valley Hospital in Sioux Falls, S.D. where they met with the person in charge of Sioux Valley’s student-nursing program. She tested that day and was qualified to go into the nurses training program and was awarded a special scholarship from a local business that allowed her to complete the three-year program. This was the beginning of lifelong friendships with her Sioux Valley classmates as they’ve continued to stay connected through the years and to have reunions at Sioux Valley.
While working in Tyler, Minn., Ardys was introduced by a nurse friend of hers to her brother, Ronald Manzey, and they were united in marriage on April 18, 1964, in Worthington, Minn. Together they were able to share over 50 years of marriage. This marriage was blessed with three children, Troy, Sonja and Anita. Ardys worked as a registered nurse for 50 years. She worked in several different places including Trimont, Lakeview, Estherville, Iowa, Sherburn Clinic, and as a surgical nurse at the Fairmont Hospital. Ardys also taught some nursing classes at the high school. Ardys and Ron moved to Trimont after retiring from farming and in 2015 they moved to Temperance Lake Ridge Assisted Living in Sherburn. As Ardys’ health began to decline, she moved to Benedictine Living Community in Northfield, Minn.
Ardys was a member of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Sherburn where she was active in Ladies Aid, LWML and the church choir over many years. Her love of singing shined through in church and community choirs, Trimont Summer Theatre productions, and the many occasions when she and Ron sang duets for weddings and funerals. She taught herself to play piano by ear and enjoyed accompanying hymns for services at Temperance Lake Ridge and Benedictine Living. Ardys was also involved in a quilting group and made keepsake quilts for her children and grandchildren. She participated in Tour of Tables at the Trimont Covenant Church and enjoyed being a Red Hat Lady. Ardys was a farm girl at heart and worked hard alongside Ron milking cows, caring for livestock, and working in the fields. She had a love for birds and flowers with her favorite being Tulips and collecting Delft ware.
Those left to cherish her memory include her children, Troy (Sherry) Manzey of Holland, Minn., Sonja (Steve) Mueller of Stacy, Minn. and Anita Scherer (Galen Mastin) of Sherburn, Minn.; grandchildren and great-grandchildren, Bryan and Kennedy Manzey and their children, Finnick and Kylo, Brooklyn Manzey (Ivan Smith), Brynn Manzey, Sydney and Jim Fischer and their children, Liam and one on the way, Logan Mueller (Brianna Levine) and Nicole Scherer (Joseph McGrail); brothers, Norman (Kim) Baker of Bay City, Wis. and Leon Baker of Neenah, Wis.; sisters-in-law, Judy Baker of Ripon, Calif., Sharon Baker of Ashton, Iowa, Eva Lou (Harold) Schmidt of Sioux Falls, S.D. and Jolene Manzey of Northfield, Minn. and several nieces, nephews and other relatives and friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Andrew and Rena Baker; husband, Ronald Manzey; sister, Ruegena (Merrill) VanderSyde; brothers, Irvin Baker and Lloyd Baker; and sister-in-law, LaVonne (Arlen) Foss.
(Kramer Funeral Home)