Johnson Funeral Service – Thief River Falls, MN

LaVonne D. Thune passed away on Monday, September 11, 2017 at Valley Elder Care in Grand Forks, ND with her loving family at her side.

Funeral service will be held 11:00 AM on Saturday, September 16, 2017 at Our Saviours Lutheran Church in Thief River Falls with Reverend Alex Amiot Officiating. Burial will be held at St. Pauli Cemetery rural Thief River Falls, MN.

Visitation will be held on Friday 5 – 8 PM with a 7:00 PM prayer service at Our Saviours Lutheran Church and also one hour prior to the service on Saturday.

LaVonne Delores Nelson was born April 16, 1926 at Grygla, MN, daughter of John and Amanda (Englund) Nelson. She moved to Thief River Falls with her family in 1938.

She was baptized when she was confirmed with her brother Roy at Silver Creek Lutheran Church near Thief River Falls, MN. She attended Greenwood School in Grygla and Northfield School in rural Thief River Falls. She graduated from Lincoln High School in Thief River Falls in 1943. She attended Whitworth College in Spokane, WA for a time. She also lived in Los Angeles and worked at the Hall of Records. Her favorite job was telephone operator for Northwestern Bell.

LaVonne married Gordon Kaushagen in 1947. To this union eight children were born. When their children were a little older she worked for Land O Lakes and Northwestern Hospital. Gordon passed away in 1976. On May 23, 1979 she was united in marriage to Don Thune.

LaVonne was a past member of Silver Creek Lutheran Church and an active member of Our Saviours Lutheran Church in Thief River Falls where she taught Bible class and Sunday school. She was a born again Christian and loved studying her Bible. LaVonne also enjoyed flower gardening, baking, especially cinnamon rolls that she would share with people. She loved having coffee with family and friends. She also enjoyed riding horseback.

LaVonne is survived by her husband Don at Valley Elder Care in Grand Forks, ND; children Judy (Richard) Olson of Brooks MN, Luther (Larae) Kaushagen of Thief River Falls, MN, Daniel Kaushagen of Anchorage, AK, Mary Jane (Roger) Paradis of Mentor, MN, Mark (Cynthia) Kaushagen of Thief River Falls, MN, Joy Kaushagen of Grand Forks, ND and Kyle (Evie) Kaushagen of Thief River Falls, MN: grandchildren Shannon (Dr. Scott) Knutson, Matthew (Kathryn) Kaushagen, David (Darcy) Kaushagen, Heather (Todd) Nelson, Heidi (Jeremy) Bloedow, Alexis (Nick) Nelson, Alison Lian, Gordon Kaushagen, Karissa Kaushagen, Jonah Kaushagen, Cole (Jamie) Furuseth, Andy Furuseth, Benjamin Furuseth, Katie Furuseth, Jenny Gayden, Sonja Carlson and Jerod Carlson: twenty six  great-grandchildren: sisters Irene Johnson and Violet "Dolly" Hensley: sisters-in-law Irene Nelson of Thief River Falls, Vernice Nelson of Thief River Falls, Arlene Thune of Thief River Falls: brother-in-law Glen (Beverly) Thune of Twin Valley, MN: many nieces,  nephews and cousins.

She is preceded in death by her husband Gordon, daughter Kristi Furuseth and granddaughter Lona Moen, brothers Roy Nelson, Jerrold Nelson, Leo Nelson and John Dale Nelson; sisters Marion Olson and Helen Wilson; sister-in-law Pearl Nelson.