Dorothy Belka

Dorothy Marie Belka, age 88, of Perham, MN, died Tuesday, April 24, 2007, at the Perham Memorial Nursing Home, Perham, MN. Funeral services will be held Saturday, April 28, 2007, beginning at 11:00 am at St. Henry's Catholic Church, Perham, with Father Arlie Sowada officiating. Burial will follow at St. Stanislaus Catholic Cemetery. Visitation will be held Friday, April 27, at Schoeneberger Funeral Home, Perham, from 4:00 - 8:00 pm with a prayer service at 7:00 pm and one hour prior to services at the funeral home.

Dorothy was born February 21, 1919 in Watkins, MN, the daughter of Roy and Elsie (Bennett) Cole. She lived her teen years in the Vergas, MN, area. On September 27, 1939, Dorothy was united in marriage to Clemence Belka in the St. Stanislaus Catholic Church, Perham. Together they farmed on the north shore of Little Pine Lake until 1965 when they moved into Perham. Dorothy became the first female bus driver in the Perham area and she did so for nineteen years. Clemence died in 1982. In 1992, at the age of 73, Dorothy tried bungee jumping, twice! She quickly acquired the nickname Grandma Bungee. Dorothy loved her family and friends most and spent spare time crocheting.

Dorothy is survived by her sons, Dick (Denise) Belka, Frazee, MN; Darrell (Shirley) Belka, Glyndon, MN; and George (Judy) Belka, Dilworth, MN; daughters, Sherry (Neil) Tobkin, Wilmar, MN; and Colleen (Bill) Huebsch, Osage, IA; twenty-one grandchildren; and many great grandchildren and great great grandchildren.

Dorothy is preceded in death by her parents; husband, Clemence; two infant daughters, Carol and Jackie; and a step-brother, Dale Urbach.