Gay Sommerfeld, 75 – Thief River Falls Northern Watch

St. Cloud – Gay Sommerfeld, of St. Cloud, formerly of Thief River Falls, passed away at home on Friday, September 9, 2022 at the age of 75.
Gay Eileen Spilde was born on May 2, 1947 in Hallock, the daughter of Olaf and Esther (Zarling) Spilde. She was baptized and confirmed at Eidsvold Lutheran Church in Halma. Gay graduated from Karlstad High School in 1965.
On November 12, 1972 Gay was united in marriage to Gary Sommerfeld at Wittenberg Chapel in Grand Forks, ND. In 1974 they adopted Teresa (Terri).
In 1978 Gay began her retail career with Target, over the years helping to open stores in Grand Forks, ND, Sioux Falls, SD, and Sioux City, IA. After moving back to Grand Forks she launched Cranberry Junction craft store in 1999. In 2004 she began working at Digi-Key in Thief River Falls, as an international sales representative. In 2010 Gay and Gary moved to St. Cloud to enjoy retirement while she worked part-time at Crafts Direct until 2020.
Crafts were the center of her life, which included ceramics, Artex painting, crocheting, quilting, Hardanger, painting, and wood projects. She LOVED attending craft shows as well as instructing others in the art of crafting, especially her grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. Gay enjoyed time at the Whitney Senior Center in St. Cloud doing crafts with her friends as well.
Gay is survived by her husband, Gary of St. Cloud; daughter, Teresa (Dan) Audette of Thief River Falls; granddaughter, Sommer Audette of Moorhead; grandson, Noah Audette of Thief River Falls; sisters, Irene (Duane) Ronnander of Menomonie, WI, Fay Spilde of Altoona, WI, and Dana (Doug) Amiot of Thief River Falls; nephews and nieces, Todd Ronnander, Sara Breeggemann, Stephanie Amiot, Kourtney Bergeron, Karee Amiot, and Syrie Amiot; and several great-nephews, great-nieces, cousins, relatives, and friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents; step-father, Clarence Sevre; her in-laws; and her beloved dog, Missy.
A Celebration of Life Service will be held at
10 a.m. on Friday, September 16, 2022 at Johnson Funeral Service in Thief River Falls. Burial will follow at the Eidsvold Cemetery in Halma.
Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service on Friday at the funeral home.
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