Lorraine Haugen

Haugen, Lorraine
passed away on May 3, 2011 at age 91. Lorraine Swartz was born on December 15, 1919 on a farm near Westby, Montana. After she graduated from high school she moved to Minneapolis for a while to do domestic work. She then returned to Westby and married Olaf Haugen on October 8, 1940. Lorraine provided wonderful support to Olaf in his farming and other business ventures. She did a lot of cooking for her family and also for hired men, especially during the harvest season. Olaf and Lorraine were married for more than sixty years. They had two sons, Gregory and Larmon. In 1956, to escape the Montana winters, the family started spending the winters in Phoenix, Arizona but returned each summer to Montana to take care of the farming business. Olaf invested in real estate in Arizona and, after graduating from college, Greg and Larmon eventually got involved in various investments with Olaf and Olaf's brother, Arne. After Olaf passed away in 2001, Lorraine was no longer able to live alone so her sons chose Best Care Home of Moon Valley as her residence. The family would like to thank Ron and Tess Baylon (the owners of Best Care) and Judy, Lucy, Maria and the many other caregivers who took such good care of Lorraine for more than nine years. The family would also like to thank Dr. Thomas Cuomo for the care he provided for Lorraine at the group home. It was so nice not having to take her to a doctor's office when she needed medical attention. Lorraine enjoyed nice clothes, dressing up, shopping at department stores (including Goldwater's), cooking, baking (she made the best apple pies), going out to lunch often, spending time with her grandchildren, singing in the choir at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, vacationing often at The Bahia Resort in San Diego and one trip to Hawaii with her husband and another trip to Hawaii with her close friend, Mickey Fleck. She rarely missed The Lawrence Welk show on television and always tuned in to the Miss America pageant. She was an avid reader and subscribed to both The Arizona Republic and The Phoenix Gazette while it was still published. Lorraine is survived by her son Larmon (Linda), sister Carol Lowe, brother Duane Swartz (Jan), grandsons Brent (Megan) and Scott (Cassie) and granddaughters Stephanie and Heidi (Craig) and six great grandchildren. She is preceded in death by her husband, Olaf, son Greg, brothers Wallace, Alden, Lyle and sister Hazel Johnson. Contributions in Lorraine's memory can be made to Hospice of the Valley, 1510 E. Flower St., Phoenix, AZ 85014. The following quote was found handwritten in Lorraine's Bible: "Death is not extinguishing the Light, It is putting out the lamp because the Dawn has come". Graveside services will be held at 10:30 am on Wednesday, May 11, 2011 at Resthaven Park Cemetery, 6450 West Northern Avenue, Glendale, Arizona 85301. Please visit www.hansenmortuary.com to send online condolences.