Anna Mae Peterson, 85, of Willmar

Anna Mae Peterson, 85, of Willmar and formerly of Benson, died Monday, April 8, at Bethesda Pleasant View Nursing Home.
Funeral services were held at 1:30 p.m.  Saturday, April 13 at Our Redeemer’s Lutheran Church in Benson.
Interment was at Fort Snelling National Cemetery at a later date.  
Memorials to Rice Hospice (www.ricehospice.com) or donor's choice are preferred.  
Anna Mae Backlund Peterson was born to Roy and Isabelle Rierson Backlund  October 8, 1927, in Litchfield, Minnesota.  She was baptized and confirmed in the Lutheran faith in Kandiyohi and attended Whittier School in Kandiyohi through the 8th grade before graduating from Willmar High School in 1945.  She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Gustavus Adolphus College, St. Peter, in 1949.  
Anna Mae was united in marriage to C. Howard Peterson at Ebenezer Lutheran Church in Kandiyohi  June 25, 1949.  In 1951, they moved to Benson where they raised their family and resided until moving to Sunrise Assisted Living, Willmar, in April 2012.  
Anna Mae was a homemaker and also taught English in Owatonna, Kerkhoven, and Hancock.  She was an active member of Our Redeemer’s Lutheran Church in Benson, where she was a member of the Ladies Aid, Circle, and a committee member for the Koinonians’ trip to Japan in 1972.  She was a member of the Monday Club in Benson for many years.
Her hobbies included reading, doing crossword puzzles, home decorating, sewing, watching sporting events, attending plays, spending summers on Lake Minnewaska and travelling.
Anna Mae is survived by her husband, C. (Carl) Howard Peterson; four daughters and sons-in-law, Jane and Jonathan Holmquist of Lawrenceville, New Jersey, Ann and Stanley Sommer of Brenham, Texas, Barbara and Kevin Zachman of Hanover, Minnesota, Emily and Timothy Marusich of Leucadia, California; one son and daughter-in-law, Ross and Myna Peterson of Cannon Falls, Minnesota; eight grandchildren and spouses, Carl and Elizabeth Holmquist, Samuel and Megan Sommer, Maria Sommer, Andrew and Stacy Zachman, Daniel and Maria Zachman, Isaac Peterson, Brock Peterson, and Anna Marusich; five great grandchildren, William Holmquist, Nathan Holmquist, Charlotte Sommer, Braeden Zachman and Halle Zachman; one brother and sister-in-law, Allan and Iris Backlund of Kandiyohi; and one sister, Emily Cole of Decorah, Iowa, besides other relatives and friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents; brother-in-law, Austin Cole, brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, Richard and Dorothy Peterson, Ralph and Brownell Peterson, Algene and Elaine Peterson and sister-in-law, Arlene Peterson.