Barbara Ann Secora

September 23, 1939 – July 15, 2024
Barbara Ann Secora, (née Simonson), joined our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ in Heaven on July 15, 2024.
She was born the second of 5 children to Army Master Sergeant, Alfin Simonson and his wife, Betty, when they lived in Thief River Falls, Minnesota on September 23, 1939.
Relocating several times, as Army families do, they finally settled in Wakefield, Kansas, a very small town, not too far from Fort Riley where their father was stationed. It was in Wakefield, where Barb met her first husband, Jim Rassatt, who also was stationed at Fort Riley. They were married on February 10th, 1955. They moved to Minnesota where Jim was from, and raised their 5 children: Elizabeth, Jim, Victoria, Rebecca and Mark.
While living in Delano, their neighbor across the street, Myra Rolf became a close friend of Barb's and invited her to attend church with her at Mt. Olive Ev. Lutheran, not too far from their homes. Myra's Christian faith, and kindness towards Barb led into forming long-lasting friendships with Myra's adult children and their families, Dick (Elaine), Bonnie (Ken), Mavis (Don), Garret and Linda. Barb felt a strong connection with the Rolf & Weege families, and she found a niche where she belonged. Through their friendship and love, Barbara and her children came to faith, becoming members of Mt. Olive Lutheran. That friendship between the families still exists. During her years in Delano, she also met Loren and Fran Yeager and their family. Fran and Barb became close friends and loved "garage-saling" together.
In 1968, Jim & Barb built a home on Rassatt family farmland, located south of Buffalo. There they raised their family, and often opened their home to help others in need. Barb and her family attended Crawford Lake Trinity Church, where she would volunteer with Sunday School and Vacation Bible School. Jim & Barb did move a couple of times but stayed south of Buffalo until their divorce in 1984.
Barbara worked as a CNA for the Retirement Center of Wright County for several years, then in her mid-forties, Barbara decided to go back to school, obtained her GED and completed her LPN nursing degree from Anoka Technical College, with her neighbor and dear friend, Nancy Davis.
Barbara then met and married a kind and gentle man from Montrose. Barbara often had described him as her soulmate, William Secora. They were married at Crawford Lake Trinity Church on April 27th, and Bill embraced her family as his own. Deciding to take early retirement, Bill & Barb moved to Clay Center, Kansas where they enjoyed twenty years of small-town living. They liked to travel to different parts of the United States, visiting their friends and family, and often included some of their grandchildren in their adventures. They later moved to sunny Arizona for a few years, where they really loved the vegetation and historical interests of the state. In 2006, Bill & Barb decided to move back to Minnesota to be closer to their children and grandchildren, where Barb's love for Christmas fit right in with all the snowy, wintry days.
Barb loved helping others whenever she could. She enjoyed visiting with her friends and family and going out to dinner to enjoy fried shrimp and fried mushrooms. She would promptly remove all of the breading from them and then eat. She was asked why she didn't just get the broiled or sautéed version, and she said it just didn't taste as good! LOL!
Some of Barb's hobbies included going to garage sales, shopping at antique and second-hand stores, writing poems, trying different styles of canvas painting, stained glass painting, ceramics and various forms of crafts when time and space allowed her to do so.
Although she said she didn't really like to cook, she was very good at it! Many family members remember some of her specialties: Chicken-n-Dumplings, Hamburger Goulash, Creamed Peas, Fried Chicken and Pot Roast. She did love to make desserts like apple pie, rhubarb dumplings, cinnamon rolls, chocolate chip cookies and corn-starch pudding. One of her favorite snacks was popcorn, which she would dump directly on to the table to sort out the unpopped kernels and enjoy with her grandchildren.
Left to cherish her memory are her 2 brothers: Wes (Margie) Simonson, Jim (Pat) Simonson;
5 children: Elizabeth (Bill) Morrissette, Jim (Annette) Rassatt, Victoria (Sam) Davis, Rebecca (Roger) Dye, Mark Rassatt, her 5 Step-children: Deb Secora (Tom Weidenbach), Cindy Entinger, Linda (Mike) Roufs, Wayne Secora, Michael (Christine) Secora. Plus many grandchildren and great-grandchildren: Scott & Steph Breimon (Sydney & Wyatt); Clint & Sara Morrissette (Christian, Lincoln, Scarlett); Luis & Christina Castenada (Michael, RaeLynn, Isaac); Ryan & Pam Rassatt (Morgan, Marshal, Murphy & Madison); Jim Rassatt (Beau, Tucker); Cody & Carina Rassatt (Christian); Luke & Kjirsten Rassatt (Easton, Brett); Alexander & Sarah Davis (William), April Smith (Angelica, Audrianna); Rachel & Ethan Turenne (Zeke, Faith, Luke); Barbara Dye (Keiden); Gabrielle Dye (Lillian, Alaya, Annabella); Boyd Rassatt, Heidi & Matt Utsch, Samantha & Janelle Roufs, Nathan & Monica (David) Entinger; Jeremy & Sheena (Elliott & Charlotte) Entinger; Timothy & Katie (Danielle) Entinger; Stephanie Entinger (Alex Brandt); Maisie Secora.
She is loved by many other relatives and friends, including her nieces, nephews and favorite former sister-in-law, Marianna Jo Arolin, whom she remained close to over the years.
She was preceded in death by her husband, William, her parents, Alfin & Betty Simonson, sisters and their husbands, Nancy (George) Moore, Karen (Randy) Martin, In-laws, Joe & Esther Secora, and her daughter-in-law, Katie Secora, as well as her former husband, Jim, and his parents Urban & Beulah Rassatt.
The Funeral Service will be held Saturday, July 20, 2024 at 10:30am at St. Peter's Ev. Lutheran Church in Monticello, with visitation 1 hour prior to the service. A luncheon will be served following the service.
Burial will then follow at St. Mary's Cemetery on County Road 8 in Waverly, MN at 2:00pm, where she will be reunited with her love for their eternal rest.
A special poem was written for Barbara, by her best friend, (and former sister-in-law), Marianna Jo Arolin.
The September Girls
We were the September Girls, barely in our teens.
Our friendship soon blossomed, we shared each other's dreams.
We married brothers, and raised our families.
Nothing was easy, nothing was a breeze.
Tears flowed too easily, we both felt the pain
Our hearts were broken, time and time again.
There was a silly side, to the disappointment we shared.
Ours was a deep friendship, where nothing was spared.
Then you moved away, to the land of the sun.
But still your letters came, one by one.
We laughed and we cried, life didn't seem fair.
But that togetherness and love, was always there.
Friendships are sacred, we had sixty-eight years.
It makes my heart glad, you were there to dry wayward tears.
Barbara Ann – beautiful lady, your heart was fashioned of gold.
You leave us the lesson of sharing, a luxury forever to hold.
So fly with the Angels, dearest friend of mine.
We'll skip down the streets of Heaven, all in God's time.
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