Marcella Mekash Mortrude, 92

St. Cloud- Marcella Mekash Mortrude was born on a farm in northern Minnesota on June 6, 1931. Her parents- Mary and Joseph- spoke Polish to one another when they didn't want the kids to listen in. Marcy had two older brothers who worked the farm while, by her own admission, she never did a farm chore in her life. Instead, she dressed the farm cats in doll clothes and pushed them around in a baby buggy.

After graduating 8th grade at the one-room schoolhouse, Marcy moved into the town of Roseau to finish high school and then went on to earn her Registered Nursing degree in North Dakota.

On July...