Susan Winters

Susan L. Winters, age 54 of West Union, died Friday, January 3, 2014 at her home in West Union, Minnesota.

A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, January 6 at Zion Lutheran Church in Sauk Centre with Rev. Marty Porter officiating. Inurnment will be at a later date in St. Alexius Cemetery in West Union.

Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Sunday at the Patton-Schad Funeral Home in Sauk Centre and from 10 to 11 a.m. at the church Monday morning.

Susan Lynn Vanstrom was born August 19, 1959 in Bemidji, Minnesota to Robert and Evangeline (Johnston) Vanstrom. Sue went to school in Bemidji until her family moved to Coon Rapids where she started seventh grade. She graduated from Coon Rapids High School and went on to attend Bemidji State University. After school she returned to the Twin Cities and was working at Offerman Company when she went home to Osakis with one of her best friends and met Gary Winters. The couple dated for a few years before getting married on May 4, 1985 in Coon Rapids. The couple then moved to West Union where they started their family. Sue worked at home taking care of children before she became Postmaster of West Union, a job she held until she passed away. Sue loved sports, playing softball and volleyball and watching all of the sports and activities that her children were involved with including, football, basketball, softball, and Speech. Needless to say she was very involved in Streeter Athletics. She also loved watching her "soaps" and playing Farmville and Candy Crush. Sue was the life of the party and always said "If you're not going to have fun, stay home." Sue was a member of Zion Lutheran Church in Sauk Centre and was a Christian Mother at St. Alexius Catholic Church in West Union.

Survivors include her husband of 28 years, Gary Winters of West Union; children, Ashley Winters of Mounds View, Abby Winters of West Union, Kevin Winters of Mounds View, Emily Winters of West Union, and Steven Winters of West Union; mother, Vangy Vanstrom of Coon Rapids; brother and sisters, Dwayne (Dianne) Vanstrom of Ham Lake, Shirley (Don) Conner of Andover, and Mary (Rick) McCullough of Maple Grove; brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, Robert Carter of California, James (Mary) Winters of Sauk Centre, John (Cathy) Winters of West Union, Ron (Nancy) Winters of Osakis, Rita Winters of Alexandria, and Elizabeth (Mike) Melby of Brooklyn Center; many nieces and nephews; and great-nieces and great-nephews.

Sue was preceded in death by her father, Robert Vanstrom; sister, Carolyn Carter; father-in-law and mother-in-law, Verne and Esther Winters; sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Beverly and Richard Friedrichs.

Serving as casket bearers will be Matt Winters, Mark Winters, Tom Winters, Paul Winters, Isaac Winters, Sam Melby, Jason Carter, and Joe Vanstrom.