SPENCER — Mary Ann Olson, a devoted wife, mother, grandmother and nurse whose adventurous spirit carried her from Iowa farm life to the Grand Canyon, RAGBRAI and countless journeys with her husband, died Wednesday, July 29, 2026, at Spencer Hospital. She was 85.
Visitation will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, August 2, at the Henry-Olson Funeral Chapel, 401 North Seventh Street in Estherville.
A funeral service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Monday, August 3, at Wallingford Lutheran Church, 221 Saint James Avenue in Wallingford.
Mary Ann was born July 4, 1941, in Spencer, the daughter of Marion and Leota Olson Felton.
She graduated from Lake Center High School, where she developed a love for basketball. One of her fondest memories was helping defeat Royal High School and preventing the team from advancing to the state basketball tournament that year.
Following high school, Mary Ann earned her nursing degree from Broadlawns Teaching Hospital. She dedicated her professional life to caring for others through her work at Spencer Hospital, the Abben Cancer Center and as a home health nurse.
Mary Ann married Darwin Olson on June 30, 1963. The couple shared 63 years of marriage and raised two sons, David and Daniel.
Her life was filled with family, service, creativity and adventure. Mary Ann enjoyed quilting and was a member of the Blue Water Quilters Guild. She created many quilts for family members and friends while also donating quilts to people in need.
She also enjoyed gardening, making rugs on her loom, playing dominoes with friends from her coffee group and helping Darwin on the family farm.
Mary Ann loved her horses, George and Flame, and rode them often. Her many other interests included boating, fishing, camping and celebrating her birthday each year with a Fourth of July party.
Darwin and Mary Ann could frequently be found showing their 1957 Ford Thunderbird at car shows, spending winters in Arizona and Florida or traveling with friends on their Goldwing motorcycle.
The couple also loved dancing together on weekends. During one memorable evening at the Roof Garden, Mary Ann and Darwin won a twist dance contest they had not even realized they had entered.
Mary Ann embraced physical challenges and the outdoors. She participated in numerous RAGBRAI bicycle rides and once hiked to the waterfalls at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.
She also enjoyed snowmobiling in the Black Hills and traveling throughout the country, creating a lifetime of memories with family and friends.
Mary Ann is survived by her husband, Darwin Olson; her sons, David Olson and his wife, Peggy, and Daniel Olson and his wife, Karen; her grandsons, Jacob and Matthew Olson; and her sister, Nira Rusk and her husband, Robert.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Marion and Leota Felton; her brother, Brent Felton; a brother who died in infancy; and her parents-in-law, Norman and Viola Olson.
Mary Ann will be remembered as a loving wife, mother, grandmother and sister whose compassion, energy and sense of adventure touched everyone who knew her.
Henry-Olson Funeral Home is handling arrangements. To read more and see the full obituary, please click here.
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