Elayne Eloise Hagen

Elayne Hagen was born in June, 1929, the third child of Mildred (McCreary) and Leo Fish. Shortly after, Mildred and Leo divorced and Mildred began raising three young children as a single mother during the Depression. Elayne grew up on 2^nd Avenue North with her sister and brother, and lots of cousins and friends nearby.

Following her mother’s marriage to Marlowe Axtell, the family moved briefly to Chicago but returned to Grand Forks. During World War II, they lived in Sausalito, California. Elayne had fond memories of Tamalpais High where she attended classes. After the war ended, the family returned to Grand Forks where Elayne graduated from Central High School.

Elayne worked for Bell Telephone until she married Herman Hagen in August, 1949. Herman and Elayne knew each other from childhood. He’d been a friend of her uncle, Terry McCreary, and brother, Beryl.

Daughter Sandra was born in Grand Forks, son, Jace, was born in Reno, Nevada after Herman and Elayne moved there in 1954. They returned to Grand Forks in 1958 and became lifelong residents.

Elayne worked at Herberger’s Department Store, then spent 22 years at the Grand Forks Clinic. She also worked at Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota for several years. Her last jobs were at Sam’s Club, working as a “sample” lady.

Elayne always took pride in keeping a clean house and neat yard. But her true happiness was creating for others. She spent many hours crafting fabric dolls, and other needle work projects. She loved to cook and bake treats for gatherings. Elayne was famous in her neighborhood and beyond as the Halloween “monster cookie” lady. Her special holiday dish was her grandmother’s recipe for halupsie —a German-Russian cabbage roll. Her favorite activities in recent years were the card games, bingo, and potluck suppers at her apartment building.

After 53 years of marriage, Herman died in December, 2002. Elayne is survived by her brother, Beryl Axtell (Reno, Nevada), her sister, Jeannette Canali (Redding, California); daughter, Sandra and son-in-law, Tommy Taylor; son Jace and daughter-in-law, Tennille Olson; grandchildren, Molly Davis, and Mark (Leslie) Hagen; great-grandchildren, Marin Davis, and Shannon and Abby Hagen.

***** A memorial gathering will take place from 12:00 - 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 9th at Amundson Funeral Home in Grand Forks.