Myrtle E. Hutchins

Myrtle E. Hutchins, age 102 1/2, of Litchfield, MN died at the Dassel Lakeside Nursing Home in Dassel, MN, on Saturday, April 9, 2011 from old age. A memorial service will be held at 2:00 PM on Thursday, June 23, 2011 at First Lutheran Church in Litchfield. Interment will be held at Lake Ripley Cemetery, Litchfield, MN. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given to First Lutheran Church or Lakeside Healthcare Center Entertainment fund. Myrtle Engebretson Hutchins (nee Myrtle Evelyn Cecelia Josephson), was born on September 24, 1908 in Ivanhoe, MN, to Joseph and Anna (Abrahamson) Josephson. Many people around the Litchfield area remember her as their teacher. Or they may remember visiting her Eskimo Museum. Myrtle's many interests included traveling, music, and art. She loved to play the accordion. She loved to paint. Myrtle's zest for life is exemplified by the time-line of her life below. 1908-1928 Myrtle was born in Ivanhoe, MN on Sept 24, 1908. She graduated from McGregor, MN High School when she was 17 yrs old and enrolled that summer in a teacher training program. She was hired to teach school that year by her uncle who was on the school board. Her pay was $45 a month from which $15 a month was deducted for room and board ($45 then is equivalent to $555 of purchase power now) Myrtle attended Duluth Teacher's College to continue her teaching education. 1929-1940 Myrtle married Maynard Engebretson on Sept 7, 1929 during the depression. They lived with his parents the first year. ""That wasn't too great."" she said. They hitch-hiked to Litchfield with two quarters in their pocket. Maynard was answering an ad for a grease-monkey job at Fenton Chevrolet. Her oldest son, Maynard, Jr., was born in 1934 while they lived on a turkey farm north of Litchfield. Her youngest son, Marvin, was born in Litchfield in Residence Park in 1937. Myrtle was then a housewife with two small boys. She cleaned houses to pay the doctor bills. Maynard had advanced to becoming a mechanic at Fenton's. 1941-1944 During WWII Myrtle taught school in Dassel and Darwin and the District 65 one-room school (Her son Marvin was in second grade there, 7yrs old). 1943-1963 Myrtle started attending summer sessions at St. Cloud State College. In 1953 she received a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education from St. Cloud State College. She received a Master's degree in Education from the University of Minnesota in 1963. 1945 At the end of WW II, Maynard and Myrtle bought a 120-acre farm south of Litchfield. To stock the farm, they took out a chattel mortgage for $450 to buy 2 horses, 2 cows, 5 heifers, 2 brood sows, 17 spring pigs, 28 hens, 500 chicks and misc. horse-drawn farm equipment. 1948-1973 Myrtle wanted to travel. She got a Letter of Recommendation signed by Rudolph Bensen, Chairman of a local school district and applied to different schools. She first taught three years in Tillamook, Oregon. Then Rialto, California. This position led to teaching positions at Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada and Povungnituk, on Hudson Bay, Canada; Frobisher Bay in the Baffin Islands, in the Artic; St. George Island, Alaska; Seldovia, Alaska; Fort McPherson, Yukon, 50 miles north of the artic circle; and Fort Chimo, in the Artic. Before retiring from teaching in 1973, she also taught again in Minnesota at Lincoln School in Willmar and Groveland School in Wayzata. 1965-1980 Maynard and Myrtle built a new house on the farm, by their own hand, and converted the old house into an Eskimo museum which was visited by many people, tours and school groups. In the winter they would migrate to Texas and Arizona in their house trailer. In 1978 they sold the museum. Myrtle and Maynard celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with an Open House on Sept. 9, 1979. Maynard died on Mar. 13, 1980. 1982-1992 Myrtle continued to live alone in Apache Junction, Arizona. One year she painted the entire exterior of her trailer with Christmas pictures. She advertised for a traveling companion, (have trailer will travel), found one and subsequently married him (Glen Hutchins). She spent many happy years traveling around the U.S. with Glen. They spent several summers as volunteer greeters at national parks in Utah and Michigan. Glen died in 1992. 1993-1996 Myrtle then became a Global Volunteer and traveled to Poland, Spain and Italy. She also worked as a volunteer for BA�rgermeisteramt Stegen offering English lessons for children and their families in Germany. 2000-2010 Myrtle won an Ageless Heroes award (She was 1 of 60 winners from 3000 contestants nationwide. She was also named Ms. Congeniality in the Ms. Arizona Contest. She worked in Yellowstone National Park for Hamilton Stores at age 92. Her wanderlust led her to Whispering Pines in Warrenton, Missouri. From there she returned home to Minnesota in March of 2007 to Augustana in Litchfield, where she celebrated her 100th birthday, and then on to Lakeside Apartments and Lakeside Healthcare Center in Dassel. Myrtle is survived by her youngest sister, her two sons, 6 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren, and a great-great-grandchild.Previous Events Visitation Thursday, June 23, 2011 2:00 PM First Lutheran Church 703 South Sibley Avenue Litchfield, MN 55355