Charlotte Ann Lonnee

(January 14, 1924 - January 10, 2022)

Charlotte Ann Brandenburger Lonnee passed away at her home on January 10, 2022, just four days before her 98th birthday. Her eldest child of seven, Milton III, was at her side.

Charlotte was born on January 14, 1924, the first of thirteen children, on the family homestead farm in rural Roberts County, South Dakota, to Nick Brandenburger and Mary Ann Braun. She lived there until she was four years old at which time she moved to Little Falls, MN, and thrived under the guardianship of her father’s cousin, Josephine Sand. There Charlotte would receive a Catholic education and the companionship of playmates within walking distance from the Sand home. Under Josie’s tutelage Charlotte began a lifelong love of the arts from embroidering dish towels and sewing doll clothes at age 4, to sewing and knitting to clothe her own children, to attending Zoom classes in watercolor through the last semester of her life. It was at Rancho Santiago Community College in Orange, CA, that she received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019.

Charlotte met Milton Lonnee, Jr., during her high school years. They married at Fort Dix, NJ, on January 31, 1942, just days before he shipped off in service of his country during World War II. The new Mrs. Lonnee joined a friend in Chicago supporting the war effort by doing government office work until the war ended and Milton returned home to his beloved bride. They lived in Little Falls until 1952 when they, along with their first three children, moved to Long Beach, CA, and then to their new home in Garden Grove, CA, where their remaining four children were born and where Charlotte lived until her passing.

Charlotte’s life work focused on her home and her family, but she also worked outside the home as an accounting assistant and as a tailor at Disneyland. Her creative outlets were endless: sewing, embroidery, needlepoint, tatting, quilting, knitting, crochet, cross stitch, millinery, china painting, oil painting, water coloring, weaving, braiding rugs, creating macramé, crafting dolls, and baking bread and pie crusts like no other. Her love of learning inspired her to take classes to continually improve her skills and learn new ones such as computer literacy and life writing. With her passion for genealogy, Charlotte attended seminars, researched at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City yearly, and wrote hundreds of letters seeking information on ancestors and newcomers into the family. It was through this work that she was blessed to meet a previously unknown grandson, Brian Green, and his family. Also, through these connections, she, along with her sister Shirley, assembled a book of recipes from their many generations of relatives. Charlotte also compiled several books of her family’s history and faithfully attended family reunions of the Braun-German descendants every three years in various cities in the nation. There she met new relatives, reminisced with the old, and collected more information for her records. Until her death this month Charlotte was the oldest surviving member of her maternal grandfather, Hubert John Braun (1859-1948).

A love of history, art and culture inspired Charlotte to travel to numerous countries of Europe, Asia, and North and South America. She visited nearly all the US states and delighted in meeting new friends and relatives wherever she went, even as far as visiting ancestors’ homes in Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

Her devotion to God was a source of inspiration and solace to her all her life. As a member of St. Columban Catholic Church in Garden Grove for over sixty years, she was at home there, sewed and embroidered many altar cloths and vestments for the priests and deacons, and served as a Eucharistic minister. Just as she had been taught at a very young age, without fail she said her prayers before meals and at bedtime. For a number of years as she heard her body call for more exercise and her soul for more prayer, she walked the mile to church daily to attend Mass. Some of her last months’ greatest joys were comforting visits from St. Columban religious leaders.

As a model of grace and humility with a positive outlook and respect for all of God’s children, Charlotte will long be remembered and respected by those who knew her.

Preceding her in death were her husband Milton Lonnee, Jr., and granddaughter Jill Lonnee; parents Nick and Mary (Braun) Brandenburger; father- and mother-in-law Milton (Phoebe Coté) Lonnee; siblings and spouses Bernice (Elmer) Sander, Evelyn (Gerald) Virnig, Dorothy (Leonard) Sluss (Walter) Huehn, Irene (Joseph) Fleischhacker (Vaughn) Euge, Baby Florence; brothers Walter, Paul, Charles (Jeanette), Nicholas; brothers-in-law Donald Robertson, Charles Lind.

Also preceding her in death were all her brothers- and sisters-in law from the Lonnee side of the family Dolores (Carl) Vonder Haar, Muriel (Walter) Hubert, Richard (Theresa) Lonnee, Shirley (Donald) Mrozek and John (Elise) Lonnee.

Surviving her are her seven children and their spouses Milton III (Chela), George (Patte), Stephen (Vivian), Scott (Pattie), Patrick (Stephanie), Lisa (Anthony) Ingoglia, Carol (Louis) Gutierrez.

Also surviving her are her grandchildren Brian (Candace) Green, Jason Lonnee, Damian Lonnee, Cole Lantz, Hanna Lantz; great grandchildren Michael Green, Daniel Green, Brandon (Melissa) Lonnee, Michael Lonnee, Isaac Lonnee, Justin Clayton; great great grandchildren Arwen Lonnee and Ryker Lonnee.

Other survivors include siblings Mary Ann Robertson, Shirley Lind, Arthur (Constance) Brandenburger; sisters-in-law Avis Brandenburger, Marlene Brandenburger, Janette Brandenburger. Additional survivors include hundreds of nieces, nephews and cousins.

Memorial Vigil will be held at Dimond & Shannon Mortuary, 10630 Chapman Ave, Garden Grove, CA 92840, on Thursday, January 27, 2022, from 4:30 PM - 8:00 PM.

Masks are required at the mortuary.

Funeral Liturgy will be said at 11:30 AM on Friday, January 28, 2022, at St. Columban Catholic Church, 10801 Stanford Ave, Garden Grove, CA 92840. Reception following the Mass outside church in courtyard. Masks and social distancing are requested at Mass and reception following service.

Burial service will take place at 10:00 AM, Tuesday, February 1, 2022, at Riverside National Cemetery, 22495 Van Buren Boulevard, Riverside, CA 92518. Masks and social distancing are recommended/required as directed by military supervisors.