Fergus Falls woman turns 110-years-old

By Tom Hintgen

Otter Tail County Correspondent

Gratitude and serenity were again conveyed by Gert Larson of Fergus Falls, a resident of Otter Tail County who celebrated her 110th birthday on April 4 at the Pioneer Pointe assisted living facility.

Once again, as in previous years, relatives and friends all across Otter Tail County gave praise to this amazing woman who survived two pandemics, the first in 1918 and the second pandemic that took hold in 2020. 

Six years ago Gert used her trusty 1939 Singer sewing machine to sew masks for nursing home staff and residents. Today she uses that same sewing machine to make mission quilts for First Lutheran Church in Fergus Falls. 

She was 106 when she moved from her home near Lake Alice north of downtown Fergus Falls to Pioneer Pointe on the south side of town. She happily shares her positive attitude and zest for life with other residents. 

Gert, who has lived through the administrations of 19 presidents starting with Woodrow Wilson in 1916, has left a positive impact on people over many years.

“Yes, my mother has touched many lives,” says her daughter Margaret, a 1966 Fergus Falls High School graduate and resident of the Twin Cities. A classmate of Margaret and lifelong friend of Gert, Roger Bjorklund, came all the way from Nevada to attend Gert’s 110th birthday gathering on April 4.

Another person impacted by Gert and who keeps in touch on a regular basis is 1971 FFHS graduate John Runningen who today resides in Atlanta, Georgia. Gert was his Sunday school teacher at First Lutheran Church. 

Pete Ellingson, FFHS Class of 1965, grew up near the Larson home on the southeast side of Lake Alice.

“It’s amazing that Gert is still here among us old kids now,” Ellingson said, “and what a remarkable life over a span of 110 years. Gert put on some really nice parties for her kids back in our old neighborhood near Lake Alice, a place she dearly loved.”

Antje (Schmalbruch) Hinrichs, an exchange student from Hamburg, Germany, stayed with Gert and her family in 1956-57. 
“She so enjoyed staying with the Larsons,” said Ann Johnson Arnold, FFHS Class of 1957 who currently lives in Oregon. “Sadly, Antje passed away Sept. 16, 2019.” 

The early years of Gert Larson

Gert was raised on a farm in Barnes County in southeastern North Dakota, near Valley City, and attended a small schoolhouse. She studied at St. Luke’s School of Nursing in Fargo. Her first employment was at Wright Hospital in Fergus Falls which later merged with St. Luke’s and became Lake Region Hospital.

She and Ed Larson were married in 1940. Ed served in the Navy during World War II and Gert was able to find employment in communities in which they lived, including historic Williamsburg, Virginia.

In 1945, before their return to Fergus Falls, Gert worked as a pediatric supervisor at St. Luke’s Hospital in Fargo which is now Sanford Medical Center.

“Many people have influenced me,” she said. “From my mother I inherited my longevity, good health and love of nature. My father was an avid reader and deep thinker.”

In an interview at Pioneer Pointe with Kevin Wallevand of Fargo’s WDAY-TV, Gert talked about her great-grandmother from the 1800s. She lived to be 103. “Her wedding was postponed because my great-grandfather was serving in the Civil War with the rank of private,” Gert said.

Her husband, Ed, died in 1990 and a son, David, also is deceased. Gert’s grandson, Chris, lives in Fergus Falls and Gert also has a great-granddaughter, Kelsy. Over the years her family, friends, church, community activities, volunteer service and travel have kept her busy. 

Adds Vining native Wallevand, “The longtime nurse and lover of history and art still lives by her family motto: A day enjoyed is never wasted.”