Theresa Frances (Olsen) McDonald

Theresa (Terry) Frances McDonald (nee Olsen), age 95, passed away peacefully on November 25 at The Gardens - Episcopal Homes in St. Paul.  She was born on March 3, 1927 in St. Paul to Oscar and Cecilia Olsen.  She attended St. Mark’s grade school and St. Joseph’s Academy, both in St. Paul and St. Benedict’s College in St. Joseph, MN.   She was married on October 4, 1952 to her husband Richard (Dick) McDonald who preceded her in death in August of 1983.  They lived and raised their family in the Highland Park area of St. Paul.  Following her husband’s death, she moved to Lilydale, MN where she lived until 2018.

She was a devoted, loving and proud grand and great grandmother, an accomplished bridge player, cherished her decades long friendships with high school and college friends, and loved a good off-color joke, chicken wings, Hallmark movies, lemon meringue pie, Ghirardelli dark chocolate, Lorie Line music, broiled walleye dinners, onion rings, and following Vikings football.

Terry is survived by her daughters, Mary Susan (Bill) Ressler and Annemarie McDonald, six grandchildren, Rebecca McDonald (fiancé Cheo Smith), Steven Durand, Brian Ressler (fiancé Katie Bowman), Matthew Ressler, Joe McDonald and Michaela McDonald, two great grandchildren, Cassius Smith and Lilly Durand, cousins Thomas and Jan Gainor, Adele Bartosch and Bernadette Gainor, and many nieces, nephews and friends.   She is preceded in death by her husband Dick, sister and brother-in-law Mary and Ben Hawkins, parents Oscar and Cecilia, and numerous in-laws, cousins, nieces and nephews.

Visitation to be held on Tuesday, November 29, 2022, from 4pm-7pm at O’Halloran & Murphy Snelling Chapel in St. Paul (with prayer service at 5:30pm).  Mass of the Christian Burial on Wednesday, November 29, 2022, at 11am at St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Mendota Heights with interment at Fort Snelling National Cemetery.

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