Audrey Yvonne (Pletcher) KNUTSON

PLETCHER, KNUTSON, LONG, WATSON, DOGGETT, LAWRENCE, HEISLER, BRUNER, ODEH, CARUSO, MCFARLAND, BOWMAN

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 5/22/2009 at 23:14:32

Estes Park Trail Gazette, Colorado
May 22, 2009

Audrey Knutson

A celebration of Audrey Knutson’s life will be held at her home at 3326 Moffat Ave. Loveland on Sunday May 24, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Please wear casual and comfortable clothing. Audrey Yvonne Pletcher, 81, died peacefully Dec. 30, 2008 at Sierra Vista Nursing Home in Loveland with her husband and daughters all present. Audrey was born Nov. 29, 1927 in Clarion, Iowa where she grew up on a farm. Her parents were Doris and Earl Pletcher and she has three siblings, Verle, Ron, and Donna. She graduated high school in Clarion in 1945. She worked as a telephone operator in Clarion where she met her husband, Jerry. She married Jerry E. Knutson on Feb. 14, 1948 and they had five daughters, all born in Ft. Dodge, Iowa. The family moved to Estes Park in June 1967 and they lived in Estes Park until 1988. During that time Audrey opened a health food business called Audrey’s Nutrition Center, which she owned and operated for eight years. She also helped Jerry in his business (Knutson Tire Company) with the accounting. She was active at that time in their church, Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church. Audrey had many interests but her girls were definitely her true love. Audrey loved sewing, knitting, rock collecting and spinning wool to name a few. In 1988 Audrey and Jerry moved to Loveland where she was able to have a beautiful medicinal herb garden and they also raised and showed llamas.

She is survived by her husband of 61 years, Jerry; her brother, Ron Pletcher of Laurel, Mont.; her sister, Donna Long of Tucson, Ariz. and her five daughters and their families, Deborah (Jim) Watson of Estes Park, Peggy Knutson of Loveland, Shelley (Brad) Doggett of Estes Park, Jackie (Hartwell) Lawrence of Estes Park and Jennifer (Mark) Heisler of Phoenix, Ariz. She had 14 grandchildren, Aaron and Jed Bruner, Gina Odeh, Jay and Jason Watson, Carrie Caruso, Wesley and Sarah McFarland, Skyler and Kelly Doggett, Sam and Julia Lawrence, Emily and Mark Heisler. She also had nine great-grandchildren and two more pending. She was preceded in death by her parents and sister, Verle Bowman and granddaughter Angela Lawrence. The family wants to thank Sierra Vista in Loveland for the angels who took care of Audrey during her long battle with Dementia.