Phyllis Duneman, 80

Memorial services for Phyllis Ruth Duneman will be held Thursday, November 8 at 11 a.m. at Fillmore Free Methodist Church in Fillmore. Burial will be at Cherry Grove Cemetery.

Friends may gather Wednesday, November 7 from 5 to 8 p.m. at The Hindt Funeral Home in Spring Valley and one hour prior to the service at the church.

Phyllis Ruth Duneman, 80, Spring Valley, passed into the loving arms of her blessed Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, whom she loved and served with her husband, on Friday, November 2, 2012. Her loving family was at her bedside much of the time as she suffered from lung cancer. Her body was cremated.

Phyllis was born August 5, 1932 to Ludwig and Ruth Mlenar, in Fillmore. She attended Wykoff High School. She married Paul W. Duneman on June 18, 1949 at Fillmore Free Methodist Church. They were blessed with two sons, Steven and Stanley.

Paul joined the United States Air Force on July 22, 1951. While Paul was in basic training and in Germany, Phyl and their sons lived with her parents. When Paul returned from Germany in 1953, they moved to Harlingen, Texas. In 1955, Paul reenlisted and they moved to Minneapolis, while Paul served with the 31st Air Division. Then in 1959, Paul cross-trained into another field and they moved to Lowry AFB, Colorado. When training was finished, Paul was sent to Okinawa and she came back to Spring Valley to live in an apartment above Paul’s parents’ house.

After Paul was honorably discharged from the USAF in 1961, they were appointed and moved to Alexandria to serve the Alexandria-Osakis circuit of the Free Methodist Church in the North Minnesota Conference.

Phyl was an excellent pastor’s wife and the people really loved her. In 1976, they were appointed to the Platteville, WI FMC in the Illinois-Wisconsin Conference. In 1980, they were appointed to the Peoria Bethel FMC in Peoria, IL, where they served eight years. In 1988, Paul was appointed to the Saint Francisville, IL FMC of the Wabash Conference. On June 30, 1994, Paul retired from the full-time active ministry and they moved to Spring Valley, 808 S. Broadway. Her mother lived on Warren Avenue.

Phyl loved her flower gardens and to bowl and golf. She was well-known as a prayer warrior and studied her Bible.

Phyl is survived by her husband; son, Stanley (Myrna) Duneman of Longmont, Colorado; daughter-in-law, Linda Duneman of St. Cloud; granddaughter, Dawn (Mark) Berkshire, of Bruceton Mills, West Virginia; grandsons, Andrew Duneman, of Longmont, Colorado, Nathan (Jeannie) Duneman and great-grandson, Corren Duneman of Sartell; sister, Ardelina Ericson of Preston; brother, Manley Mlenar of Spring Valley; and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents; son, Steven, at 55 who died of pancreatic cancer in 2005; and one sister, Beth.

Condolences may be left online at www.hindtfuneralhomes.com.

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