Obituary of Dolly Amundsen

“Dolly” (Mary Alice Horgan) Amundsen of Duluth died on Sunday, October 10th, 2021 at the Franciscan Healthcare Center on Park Point, Minnesota. She was 93 years old.

Mary Alice, lovingly known as Dolly, was born on May 15th, 1928 in Duluth, Minnesota to parents Francis and Helen (Fryberg) Horgan. She was the fifth of eight children. She graduated from Duluth Central High School in 1946. Dolly had countless involvements in a variety of community-based activities. She knew everyone, and everyone loved Dolly.

Dolly met her future husband, Ward Amundsen, at the Fall Inn in rural Duluth. They married on December 8th, 1950, at Holy Rosary Chapel in Duluth. They had two children – a daughter, Janie, and a son, John.

Dolly’s faith was a very important part of her life. She was a longtime member of both St John’s and St Ben’s Catholic churches, singing in their choirs and volunteering.

Not even Parkinson’s disease, which she endured for over 20 years, could dampen her indelible spirit. In short, Dolly loved life. She sang, danced, and laughed her way through it, carrying us along on her joyous ride. We are going to miss her greatly and hope to honor her example as we continue on life’s journey.

We want to extend heartfelt thanks to the many devoted staff members at the Franciscan Health Care Center for taking such wonderful care of Dolly through the last 5 years of her life. They provided her with so much love and attention and continue to support our family through this time.

Dolly was preceded in death by her parents, husband Ward, 5 siblings, and one nephew. She is survived by children Jane (Tom) Demarais, John (Robin) Amundsen; 5 grandchildren- Britney (Dino Schinigoi) Rice, Joe (Katy Mazz) Amundsen, Becca (Brad) Bohlman, Aimee (John Mousis) Demarais, and Aidan (Jackie) Demarais; 11 great-grandchildren- Carter, Logan, Hunter, Livia, Isabella, Marlon, Dylan, Emmeline, Genevieve, Marin and Evelyn; brother Pat (Marlys) Horgan, sister Sally McLean, many nephews, nieces, relatives and friends.

A celebration of Dolly’s life will be held at the Cremation Society of Minnesota on Friday, October 29th, with visitation at 2:00pm and service at 3:00pm. Pastor Kevin Meredith will be officiating. A luncheon will follow, taking necessary current COVID safety measures into consideration.