Charlotte Mudder, 78 of Avon

Charlotte passed away peacefully surrounded by her family on Wednesday, April 29, 2009 at her home following a brief battle with cancer under hospice and family care.

Funeral services will be Saturday, May 2, 2009 at First Baptist Church, Avon, SD, 11:00 am. Visitation will be at the church on Friday, May 1, from 10:30 am-7:30 pm, followed by a prayer service at 7:30 pm.

Charlotte Anne Odens was born October 1, 1930 to Charlie and Jennie Agnes (DeRoos) Odens in Bon Homme County on a farm east of Springfield. In 1943, they moved to the family farm by Kingsburg. She was baptized as an infant at the Emmanuel Reformed Church. The family attended the Kingsburg Church and the Emmanuel Reformed Church. She contributed her honesty and generous spirit to her Christian belief instilled by her parents.

She attended Quinn Country School District 33 through the 8th grade, attending and graduating from Springfield High School in 1948. She attended Southern State Teacher College (SSTC) in Springfield earning a one year teaching certificate in 1949. She taught grade school at the Lincoln Country School west of Springfield for two years. She remembered getting snowed in on a winter day at the school with a student, keeping the building warm by shoveling coal into the furnace; prior to a neighbor arriving and taking them to safety.

Charlotte married Marvin G. Mudder on August 22, 1951 at the Kingsburg Church. Following their marriage, she was baptized in and became a member of the First Baptist Church. They lived on various farms near Avon. The birth of their first child in 1953 started their large family. Five more children were born before the family moved in 1959 to a farm northwest of Dante where three more children were born. They farmed the land raising crops, chickens, hogs, and milking cows. She remembered the big hail storm that hailed out their beautiful grain crops the day before harvest in 1962.

Marvin and Charlotte bought what became the family farm two and half miles east of Avon in 1965. Four more children were added to the family completing the "Baker's Dozen". All of their daughters were given names starting with a "J" after Charlotte's mother Jennie.

In addition to raising her family, Charlotte spent many hours working on the farm, helping in the fields, milking cows with her sons and selling eggs and cream. She enjoyed gardening and canning the produce. She was an excellent baker.

In 1971, Charlotte began working as a Nurses Aide at the Springfield Nursing Home in addition to raising her family and working on the farm. On November 22, 1972, she started her long career at the Tyndall Good Samaritan Center. She worked as a Nurse's Aide, Certified Nurses Aide (CNA), Medication Aide and Laundry Aide. While her children were young, she worked the night shift in order to care for her family at home during the day. Charlotte truly loved working with the residents and her work ethic and compassion for the residents was recognized by several awards including being named the first annual Employee of the Year in 1991, and CNA of the Year in 1999. Following nomination by her co-workers and administration, she was awarded the prestigious CNA "Millie of the Year Award" for her exceptional service in long term care by the South Dakota Health Care Association in 2004. Charlotte celebrated her 35th year at the Good Samaritan Center in November 2007. She continued to work part time on weekends until the fall of 2008 and remained employed until the time of her death.

After her husband passed away in 1993, Charlotte continued working full time and stayed on the family farm until 1995. She moved into a small house in Avon and made her home there until 2008 when she moved to the Meadow View Manor in January 2008 and resided there until her death.

Charlotte was a member of the First Baptist Church and was a devoted member of the WMF group. She was a member of the Nova Neighbors Extension Club and enjoyed listening to the Neighbor Lady broadcast on WNAX radio.

Charlotte will be fondly remembered for her quiet and kind demeanor. She was very generous, hard working, and extremely thankful for everything in life. She thought of others before herself, always willing to lend a hand. She was a devout Christian and was never one to complain. She was very proud of her thirteen children with all of them being very special to her. She loved working with the elderly and gave of herself to the Good Samaritan Center in Tyndall, SD. She truly believed in their motto, "In CHRIST'S Love...everyone is someone."

Thankful for having shared her life are her thirteen children: Janice (Terry) Smidt, Huron, SD; George (Denise) Mudder, Ft. Campbell, KY; Melvin, Tyndall, SD; Joyce (Jay) Borah, Huron, SD; Dale (Annette) Mudder, Yankton, SD; Jane (Gary) Gramkow, Olivet, SD; Julie (Keith) Rothschadl, Scotland, SD; Alan (Lori) Mudder, Avon, SD; Larry (Brenda) Mudder, Avon, SD; Joan (Greg) Doty, Wagner, SD; David (Mary) Mudder, Garretson, SD; Don (Marcia) Mudder, Avon, SD; and Jacque (Jeff) Liebl, Menno, SD. 31 grandchildren, 7 great-grandchildren, three brothers: Frank (Peggy) Odens, Springfield, SD; Darrell (Elaine) Odens, Avon, SD; Chuck (Joan) Odens, Forest City, IA; two sisters: Naomi (Fred) Hale, Sonora, CA; Carol (Harlan) Ferwerda, Springfield, SD. Brothers in law: Alvin (Betty) Mudder; Jerry (Cherilyn) Mudder; Sisters in law: Ilene (Bob) Pudwill; Miriam Johnson; Adella (Don) Massey and many relatives and friends.

Charlotte was preceded in death by her husband Marvin (1993); her parents; mother and father-in-law George and Elsie Mudder; brother Delbert (in infancy); grandson Ross Michael Doty; brother Phillip G. Odens; and in-laws Shirley Pudwill; Velda and Dewey Olsen; LeRoy Jochims; Roger Mudder; Arnold Johnson.