Margaret Louise Jenson

Louise is survived by her children, Rick Jenson, Marlene Gaspar, Randy Carlson, Penny Jenson (Mike), Mike Carlson (Kristi), and Sandie Pearson (Shannon); 18 grandchildren Apryl, Delicia, Jackie, Brandy, Stephanie, Alecia, Jason, Maile, Derrik, Jordan, DeMia, Michael, Richelle, Jessica, Tanner, Christopher, Nick, and Catherine; 25 great grandchildren, Kierstin, David, Danika, Lucero, Bacilia, Marcelino, Mateo, Danali, Nadaya, Alyssa, Cameron, Gabriel, Brody, Delaney, Hailey, Johnny, Destiny, McKinley, Kayden, Lola, Erik, Hunter, Paige, Keilanie, and Silas; and 4 Great, great grandchildren, Karter, Dean, Aaliyah, and Azula.

Preceding Louise in death were her husband of 44 years, Gale Jenson, their children Peter Jenson, Jenny Erlanger, Dave Durden (Jennifer), Yvonnda Uphold, Tracy Jenson, great grandchild Nanako, Louise’s parents Aaron and Mabel, her stepdad Ted Terwilliger, and her brothers Don, Gerald, Lloyd, Melvin, and John.

Louise was born on October 25, 1939, in Thomas, Nebraska to Aaron and Mabel Kinney. She was 1 of 6 children, she was their youngest child and only daughter. Louise moved with her family to Washington in 1948.

Prior to finding her forever husband, Gale Jenson, Lousie had been married to Tom Durden (1956). Dennis Carlson (1962) and Roger Musgrove (1970), where she had 6 children (Dave, Yvonnda, Marlene, Randy, Mike and Sandy. She found her love in 1975 in Gale Jenson, where together they raised 11 children and spent 44 years together until Gale’s passing in 2020.

She was the best Mom to all her children, she was loving and affectionate, stern and to the point but best of all she always had our backs. No one messed with her kids. She was the best homemaker, dinner always on the table by 5:30, she insisted we eat together around the table, and she would always make sure we all had our favorite dish, you can imagine how big that dining table needed to be.

As we all grew, and moved out, it was normal that her kids stayed close to the “family” home. She hosted Sunday dinners, and everyone was welcome. She was an excellent baker and always tried new recipes to keep her family fed. As her kids grew up and moved out, the void of having a big household full of kids prompted her to open a daycare. While it started out as watching her granddaughter, Jessica, in 1990, it quickly grew to a licensed daycare full of her her grandkids, great grandkids, and other people’s children as well.

Louise owned and operated her Daycare for 30 years. She really enjoyed her “daycare years.” She made such an impact on the kids and treated them as if they were her own. When she retired, she missed it. She talked about the kids often over her later years. Her grandchildren would tell you how lucky they were to have spent all those years with her.

In her retirement years, she and Gale would like to go out to eat, go to the casinos and go to family BBQ’s and parties. Louise loved spending time with her family and loved to bake and cook. We believe that Louise’s legacy is her large family and all those kids that passed through her care.

After Gales' passing, Louise enjoyed watching old Westerns, going to her weekly Salon appointment, and going to the casino to play her favorite slot machine – Meltdown. She also enjoyed feeding and watching the squirrels, birds, and the deer. She also enjoyed regular visits from her family.

Louise was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, great-great grandmother and will truly be missed.

A celebration of life will be held at the Thurston County Posse Hall in Littlerock on Saturday, February 1st at 4pm. Please help the family by bringing your favorite potluck dish.