Marie Elizabeth (Olson) Lee, age 89, passed into God's presence Dec. 30, 2021, at Regency of Whitmore Lake with loving family by her side. She was born Sept. 29, 1932, in Fergus Falls, Minn., to Walter Olson (Luther Class of 1924) and V. Liv (Kvamme) Olson. She is survived by her brother O. Rolf Olson ’53 (Trudy (Kolstad) Olson ‘54) and was preceded in death by her brother Paul Olson ‘63.

She lived many places throughout her life including Tainan, Taiwan, as a missionary; Spokane, Wash.; several cities in the greater Boston area; Stowe, Vt.; and Ann Arbor, Mich., to name a few. Marie was an active member of Zion Lutheran Church in Ann Arbor, Mich., and loved her affiliation with University Lutheran Church in Cambridge, Mass.

Her Christian Faith remained strong and was prominent throughout her life. Her father, mother's father and brother were all Lutheran pastors. She often referenced her faith in conversations and emails.

Marie was a classically trained pianist who learned piano starting at age 5 while recovering from Polio. Her musical ability was utilized as a regular contributor during worship services as a teenager in her parent's church and she ultimately gained acceptance into The Julliard School - which she did not attend. She had a beautiful singing voice to go along with her pianist skills and would often lead the family in song around the piano.

During high school Marie was a member of the Muskegon Jr. Lassies, a Women's Baseball League team. She pitched and played first base. Marie was a strong proponent of apple cider vinegar and strongly suggested to everyone she met that they drink it also. Marie attended Luther College and later completed her education with a master’s degree in counseling from Antioch College after her children were grown. Marie loved her family and most everyone she came across.

Marie was a proud mother of seven children, Maia (Steve), Marcus (Lisa), Anton (Fabiana), Gustav (the late Jodi Rae), and Ivan (Angela).  Kari Lee ‘77 and Tora preceded Marie in death. She was a proud Oma to 12 grandchildren, Brendan, Jason (Margaret), Gienah, Evan, Jacob (Kelly), Nathan, Faith, Gabriel, Victoria, Valerie, Veronica and Ethan, and a proud great-grandma of five.

Cremation has taken place. A memorial service will take place at Zion Lutheran Church and burial of her ashes will be in Lutheran Cemetery in Decorah, Iowa. Contributions in her memory may be made to the national Alzheimer's Association (https://www.alz.org/) or to the Samaritas organization where Mom lived for many years (https://www.samaritas.org/About-Samaritas/Empower-Others/Donate).