Florence Ann Riedel Schrieber passed away on Friday, March 1, 2019, after nearly 100 years of life. It was a gentle death; her head slumped onto her chest and she was gone. Florence was a resident of St. Mark’s Nursing Home for the past five years, waging a daily battle against dementia, which had ravaged her brain for the past 10 years.

Florence Schrieber was born on Aug. 5, 1919, in Springfield, Missouri, the only child of Myrtle and Max Riedel. Her father was a railroad mechanic who moved his family to Austin, Minnesota, in Florence’s early years. She was just about a lifelong resident of Austin. Florence grew up on the east side of Austin. She attended Austin High School, where she graduated as the salutatorian in 1937.

She married Frank Schrieber in 1940 and they welcomed five children into the world: Mary Joan Simon, who lives in Green Valley, Arizona, Bob Schrieber, residing in Albany, Wisconsin, Michael Schrieber, who passed away in 1974, Julie Wiese, dwelling in Chaska, Minnesota, and Susan Tite, living in Austin. Florence had 12 grandchildren: Kristine Hamm of Buffalo, Minnesota, Eric Wangen of Austin, Hunter Wangen of Little Canada, Minnesota, Franki Wangen of Shanghai, China, Matthew Schrieber of New Glarus, Wisconsin, Scott Schrieber of Davenport, Iowa, Pam Resch of Janesville, Wisconsin, Barbara Ford of Wautoma, Wisconsin, Carl Tite of Bloomington, Minnesota, Hannah Tite of Boston, Massachusetts, and Jacob and Sarah Wiese of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Florence had 11 great-grandchildren and 12 great-great grandchildren.

Our mother loved the outdoors. As a child, she had her own canoe and paddled the Cedar River down to the Ramsey Dam. She cherished her wanderings in the woods around town, passing on her woodland lore to her kids. She was a fisherwoman and she and her husband stole away to Mille Lacs Lake when they could. After her kids were mostly grown, she took secretarial training and went to work. She was employed as the Austin High School principal’s secretary and then went on to a corporate secretarial position at Hormel. She retried in 1984.

The public is invited to a memorial for Florence from 2-4 p.m. on Friday, May 24, 2019, at the Ruby Rupner Auditorium, Jay C. Hormel Nature Center.