Jeanne Helen O'Neill SPRAFKA

1925 - 2021

1925- 2021 At age 85 she rode on top of an elephant in Thailand. She played ping-pong in Northern Minnesota at 93 and at 95, swam with family in the pool in Palm Springs, CA. She died peacefully, Saturday April 3, 2021, in a Rancho Mirage Hospice, following a stroke. Jeanne was born on October 13, 1925 in St. Paul, MN. For ninety-five years she lived within a five mile radius in her hometown. Beginning at age 50 however, the larger world was her oyster. Passionate about travel, she made twenty-two trips to Europe with additional travels to Thailand, Turkey, Morocco, South America and Alaska. She loved her adventure on the refurbished QE2, where she happily dined in every restaurant except the one offering a reduced calorie, spa menu. She also loved her trips to Santa Fe, New Mexico to see her daughter and to visit her best friend and traveling companion, Ellie Joyce. The duo of Jeanne & Ellie were well known to Santa Fe realtors because, despite showing up at million dollar open-houses, they never actually put a house under contract. Jeanne was a graduate of The Convent of the Visitation School, Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri, and Katharine Gibbs Secretarial School in Boston, MA. She served as a member of the St. Paul Junior League for 20 years and was a member of The St. Paul Tennis Club for 48 years. Her interest in antiques, combined with an insatiable curiosity about seeing the inside of other people's houses, led her to start her own business in 1977. She was an excellent salesperson. In partnership with her son Steven, she conducted estate sales and appraisals for 35 years. She retired at age 84 in 2009. The discovery of an 18th century sterling candelabrum or a vintage Ford Model T never lost its thrill for her next sale. Jeanne cherished her children. She loved to celebrate holidays in Rochester, MN with son Philip, daughter-in-law Tammy and her two grandchildren Liz and Jake, whom she adored as well. She loved swimming, root beer floats, The Victoria and Albert Museum, all weddings (she was a wedding crasher from a very early age), and dessert any time of the day. She held strong opinions, told a good story and loved nothing more than to attend or throw a party. She made friends of all ages and persuasions—and held them dear. Jeanne is preceded in death by her parents Eugene and Helen O'Neill and her husband of 57 years, Robert F. Sprafka. She is survived by her four children, Robert Jr., Cynthia (Stephen), Philip (Tamara) and Steven, grandchildren Liz & Jake, younger sister, Judith Knode and favorite niece, Tracy Hamil. Jeanne wasn't long on goodbyes. In phone conversations, after finishing what she had to say, the person on the other end of the line would be left—receiver in hand—listening to a dial tone. We never truly believed we would ever have to say goodbye and now we are inconsolably sad to do so. Hopefully she has already tracked down the recently departed Prince Philip (Duke of Edinburgh, she would remind us) and is arranging his estate sale in Heaven. A celebration of Jeanne's life will take place in October. Bequests in her honor can be made to the nonprofit organization, People Incorporated.