Rhoda V. Larsen

WEAVERVILLE—Rhoda V. Larsen, age 89, of 42 Merrimon Ave., passed away Tuesday, July 16, 2013. Mrs. Larsen was born April 19, 1924, in Hendricks, Minn. where she grew up, and was a resident of Detroit for a number of years. She was a resident of River Edge, N.J., for 35 years and a resident of Weaverville for the past ten years. She was former lay vice-president and administrative assistant at the New Jersey Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (E.L.C.A.). Rhoda was an avid gardener, enjoyed painting, needlework, and feeding all types of animals. Her favorite thing was listening to great classical music. She was preceded in death by her parents, Adolph H. and Amanda Lueders Birner; and husband, Donald Harold Larsen who died in 1990. Surviving are her children, Kristen Dusenbery and husband Howard A. of Weaverville, Dan J. Larsen and wife Cherry of Bristow, Va., Donald P. Larsen of Budd Lake, N.J., Timothy P. Larsen and wife Inez of Deltona, Fla., Sue R. Larsen and husband Scott W. Thornburg of Kalamazoo, Mich.; sister, Talitha Scott of Flagstaff, Ariz.; brothers, Herbert Birner and wife Garnet of Indian River, Mich., Walter Birner of Canby, Minn., and Rollo Birner and wife Jackie of Sierra Vista, Ariz.; sister-in-law, Cleo Birner of Sidney, Neb.; grandchildren, Michael, Karl, Mark, Paul, Amanda, Roscoe, Laura, Lee, and Eric; and great granddaughter, Sophia. A celebration of Rhoda's life will be held at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, July 20, 2013, at Grace Episcopal Church, of which she was a member, with Rev. Gary Coffey officiating. The family will greet friends in the Parish Hall following the service. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Grace Episcopal Church, 871 Merrimon Ave., Asheville, NC 28804, or Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, 700 Light St., Baltimore, MD 21230. For those who desire, condolences may be offered to the family under Mrs. Larsen's obituary at www.WestFamilyFuneralServices.com.