Rada Nikolic Fredrikson

Fredrikson, Rada Nikolic age 90, passed away on February 27 in Tierra Verde, Fla. A woman of many talents, Rada was born April 24, 1917 in Corfu, Greece, where her Serbian father was serving as a diplomat. She wanted to be a doctor but her father said "no" so she studied chemical engineering. She graduated from the University of Belgrade and received her Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Rome in 1942. Trapped in Italy during World War II, she volunteered with the International Red Cross and after the war worked as a field officer with the International Refugee Organization. She immigrated to the United States in Sept. 1950 and worked at the 3M Company in St. Paul. In 1953, she met Minneapolis attorney Harold Fredrikson and they were married five months later on Nov. 21, his birthday. An accomplished pianist who spoke English, French, Italian, Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian and German, Rada introduced "Fred" to travel, classical music and collecting rocks, gems, shells and art. They traveled to Russia, the Middle East, and the Far East and in 1964 spent 2 1/2 months collecting minerals and preColumbian artifacts in Central and South America. Items from their collections have been donated to the Science Museum of St. Paul, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, and the Museum of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg, Fla., where they had a second home. She and Fred designed the contemporary house in North Oaks where they moved in 1958. She loved all living things, particularly their pampered dogs. A seamstress and jeweler, she always wore dresses, as befits a lady. Rada was preceded in death by son, Zoran, who was born and died in Rome in 1944; beloved husband, Fred, who died March 8, 2000; parents, Draga and Sava Nikolic; brother, Momcilo Nikolic; and a stepdaughter, Peggy Blankenfeld. She is survived by stepdaughters, Jeanne (Everett) Greene of Ridgecrest, Calif. and Kris (Jim) Johnston of Waterloo, Ia.; three nieces, Mirjana, Marina, and Dragana; five grandchildren, Michael Stone, Leslie Stone-Roy, Mary Kay Kilgannon, Beth Ehrhardt and Stephen Greene; four great-grandchildren, Riley and Trey Kilgannon and Marc and Ariel Roy; and her dear friend, Dr. Predrag Gligorovic. Special thanks to her loving caregivers, Vicki Peterson and Judy Mantegna and her Yorkie Maza. A reception will be held to celebrate her life on Sunday, April 6 at 4:00 PM at the home of Warren and Linda Mack, 2539 Thomas Ave. S., Mpls. Memorials are suggested to the Minnesota Orchestra, the Science Museum of Minnesota or the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, Fla.
This obituary was originally published in the Star Tribune.