Serving at Black Forest Academy: Walking by Faith: Evelyn Aasboe

My maternal grandmother, Evelyn Aasboe grew up outside Osakis, Minnesota and lived the majority of her life around this small town. Whenever I visit Osakis, people in her church and community remember her and recount her generosity, kindness and her strong faith. I can remember spending a week with her during the summer when I was a kid. She and my mom would meet halfway between Osakis and Watertown to exchange me or one of my brothers at a small cafe in Minnesota. Then my grandma would take us home with her. In the mornings, she would drive me to Elim Lutheran Church to attend VBS (Vacation Bible School). I can remember eating cookies and juice for a snack mid-morning, Bible stories and crafts, and sitting on the stone steps (there were two sets of stone steps outside the church, one on each side) with my friend, Rosemary eating our bagged lunches. Grandma would pick me up as we were finishing our lunch. In the afternoons, I would spend time with my grandma trying to cross-stitch or knit. She loved to sew, quilt, knit, and cross-stitch and attempted to teach me a few of these talents. Other times I would ride her bike around town and even a free kitten at a Methodist garage sale once! Astonishingly, she let me keep it as I told her it was for my brother, Daniel.
While my grandmother had a strong faith and dear friends, life was not easy for her. She grew up on a small farm in the country, married Gerald Aasboe and had two daughters; Joan and Shirley. Through some hard decisions, Evelyn raised her two girls as a single mother. She went back to school to get her nursing degree and became the head nurse at the Memorial Home in Osakis when it first opened. My aunt remembers a time when she was unable to get to the nursing home because of a blizzard so someone came and picked her up on his snowmobile! The picture taken above is after graduation from Moorhead State in her 70's when she returned to school to earn the credits needed to continue working at the nursing home in Osakis.

Grandma loved to travel and explore the world around her. She joined the Sons of Norway and traveled at least three times to Norway and Sweden with this group. Her friend, Solve had never been outside of Osakis. Grandma took her to Sisseton, SD, bought her some new clothes then took her to Norway where Solve's family originated.

Grandma's faith was very important to her as well. Passages in her Bible which had value and spoke to her are marked and underlined. When missionaries came to Elim and shared about their ministry, grandma would give them a financial gift. She made dolls for orphans and supported several children through different charities.