Marie E. Shippee

Marie was born May 23, 1921, to John and Erville (Olson) Belsheim in the small Northern Minnesota town of Roosevelt near Lake of the Woods where her father was a teacher. She grew up mostly in communities in Southwestern Minnesota with extended family nearby. She started school in Alpha, MN and graduated from Ivanhoe High School in 1939.

Marie then attended the Minnesota School of Business where she met her future husband Duane C. Shippee. She graduated in 1942 and went to Maryland where Duane was stationed at the beginning of WWII. They were married in Baltimore, Maryland on January 16, 1943. Marie worked as a finance secretary on the Edgewood Arsenal Army post and did the same when Duane was transferred to Ft. Lewis Washington.

After the war she became a mother in 1946 and due to many moves became adept at packing and unpacking and making a warm and loving home in any kind of circumstances. She was a Sunday School teacher, a very active United Methodist Women Circle member, a Girl Scout leader and a good friend to all the many neighbors in the various communities where she lived.

In the mid-1970s she became a secretary and later head secretary at the Indianhead Boy Scout Council district office, retiring from there in the late 1980s.

Marie was an accomplished seamstress and crocheter. She was a lover of history with a good memory for historical facts until the end. She was intelligent and progressive and had a wide vocabulary. She was an early adopter, for her age, of computer technology which she used to study her genealogy and write books about her heritage. She was adventuresome, riding horses when she was young and loved hiking and traveling. The family camped all over the U.S. and she made a trip to Scandinavia in her seventies. Her retirement gift was a hot air balloon ride which she was thrilled to do. She was also a warrior fighting her way through the Great Depression, WWII, many moves, her husband’s illness and in later years several accidents.

Now she is running free like the horses that she has been watching on TV at night over the last several months. She loved her family fiercely! We will miss her dearly and cherish her memory. Now it is time for our warrior to rest.

She is survived by daughter Ann (Jeff) Erdmann, daughter Helen (Dan) Mamula, son David (Dawn) Shippee, 6 grandchildren – Linden (Paul Hansen) Erdmann, Ryan (Elizabeth Zimbinski) Erdmann, Alec (Kayla) Erdmann, Misty (Jeremy) Wilson, Molly & Joshua Shippee, 6 great grandchildren – Jonah & Willow Hansen, Dawn, Annika & Mikah Erdmann, Kamryn Wilson. Also many nieces, a nephew, and many cousins.

Preceding her in death are her husband Duane, parents John & Erville, brother John Merle Belsheim & sister Ruby Mae Belsheim and many extended family members.

Our heartfelt thanks to Beyond Hospice and the very special staff at Wedgewood North for their wonderful care over the past 19 months. She loved many of you so very much!

In lieu of flowers consider a donation to the ALS Association or The Grove United Methodist Church.

A Memorial Service celebrating Marie's life will be held Sunday, September 14, 2025 at 2:00 PM with Visitation one hour prior to service, from 1 - 2 PM at The Grove United Methodist Church, 7465 Steepleview Rd, Woodbury, MN 55125. Fellowship to follow.