Irene Perske of St. Cloud, who always had an open door, dies at 101

In the front lawn of Irene Perske's St. Cloud home is a bright yellow sign warning of a crosswalk ahead. Those who look closely will notice the pedestrian silhouette is holding a coffee mug.

While it's a mystery how the decal got on the sign, the meaning is not.

"That person has a cup of coffee in their hand because her coffee pot is always on and her table is always there, open to anybody that wants to come in the door," said Joe Perske, Irene's son.

Irene, who was 101 years old, died Aug. 7. She's remembered by her family as someone who was very strong in her faith and always willing to have a conversation over a good cup of coffee and a doughnut hole.

"She said everybody's welcome here, just as Christ is, because you never know who's going to be at your door. It could be Christ," Joe said. "And that's the way she lived her life."

Joe, a former Sartell mayor and current Stearns County commissioner, is one of seven children of Irene and her husband Thayer, who died five decades ago.

Irene was born in June 1920 and was raised on the family farm in Popple Creek, just northeast of St. Cloud.

"She went to a local rural school about 2 miles away from the farm," Joe said. "Of course, she had to walk every day but she had to do her chores first. They had 13 cows, and her job was to milk three of those cows."

Irene left school after eighth grade to work on the farm. She also helped on neighbors' farms with chores or tending to children, and she dedicated much of her time to her Lutheran church.

"Mom was a doer," said Janet Clark, the youngest of the seven kids.

Irene married Thayer on Nov. 17, 1940 — the day of the famed Armistice Day blizzard — and they spent time in Sauk Rapids and Wyoming, Minn., where Thayer worked for the railroad. They moved to St. Cloud in the early 1970s when Thayer got sick. Irene lived in their house on 25th Avenue N. until the day before she died.

"She wanted to live at home even though she had macular degeneration and was legally blind," Joe said.

Clark, of St. Cloud, was Irene's main caretaker, though Clark said taking care of Irene was easy.

"She had such a routine," Clark said. "She would call me at 7:15 in the morning and say, 'I made it.' "

From 9 a.m. to noon, the coffee was on for visits from her children, grandchildren or others. After her afternoon nap, Irene would visit with family on the phone or listen to Twins games. Every night, she prayed.

After Thayer died, Irene worked as a sales associate at Herberger's in downtown St. Cloud for 25 years. She didn't have a driver's license, so she often took the bus or walked.

Irene went to St. Cloud Hospital on Aug. 6 because she was feeling dizzy. But she was chatty with the nurses, curious about where they grew up and if they knew the same people.

"And, of course, they knew her. There was always a connection," Joe said.

That night, her pulse started to get weak and she slipped away.

"It's hard to say what her secret to life was," Joe said, "but again, she always looked for the best in people and was able to find that — so much so that her door was always open."

In addition to Joe and Janet, Perske is survived by children John of Corpus Christi, Jerry of St. Cloud, Jeanne Winchell of Apple Valley and James of Coon Rapids; 11 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, daughter Joanne, sister Lois Ann Johnson and brothers Allan, Arthur, Donald and Merril. Services have been held.

Jenny Berg • 612-673-7299