OBITUARY: Virginia Cunningham Holmgren; The Dalles, Wasco co., Oregon surname: Cunningham, Holmgren, Nutting, Brown, Kaseberg, Hudson, LaVoy, submitted by Earline Wasser *********************************************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/or/orfiles.htm *********************************************************************** USGenWeb Archives - Obituary Project August 12, 2003 www.thedalleschronicle.com Copied with permission from The Dalles Chronicle.com Virginia Cunningham Holmgren Virginia Cunningham Holmgren, 94, a resident of The Dalles, died at a local care facility, Sunday, August 10, 2003. She was born June 20, 1909, in Dayton, Ohio, the second of three children to John Clifford and Minnie Estelle (Nutting) Cunningham. She grew up there, attending Ohio State University and teaching school in Dayton. She later enrolled at Northwestern University in Chicago and received a master's degree in children's literature. She was an editor at Scott, Foresman in Chicago for several years. In 1947, she traveled to Peru to work in a one-room school for an American-owned mining company. Here she met her future husband, Lloyd "Swede" Holmgren, whom she married in 1949. The couple lived in Peru and Bolivia, returning to the United States and settling in Portland in 1957. He worked as a mining engineer for the U.S. Forest Service and she pursued her writing interests. Over the years she published 36 children's books, as well as numerous books, newspaper and magazine articles about birds, animals and historical information. She was a contributing editor to the Oregonian and Birdwatcher's magazine for many years. After the death of her husband in 1997, she moved to The Dalles to be closer to family. She continued to write, publishing her last book at age 88. She is survived by her step-daughter and her husband, Karen and Lee Kaseberg; her grandchildren and their spouses; Cindy and Charley Brown; Brett and Tina Kaseberg, all of Wasco; Deron and Twila Kaseberg, Cabot, Alaska; her brother, Jack Cunningham, Pittsburgh, Penn.; her niece, Ladona Hudson, Bryan, Texas; a cousin, Gordon LaVoy, Moses Lake, Wash.; nieces, nephews and 11 great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, and her sister Jean Foster, Fla. In accordance with her wishes, there will be no public service. Her family will have a private gathering for the dispersal of her ashes. Private cremation was held at The Dalles Winquatt Crematory with Spencer, Libby and Powell Funeral Home in care of arrangements. Memorials may be made to the First United Methodist Church, 305 E. 11th St., The Dalles, OR. 97058 or to The Nature Conservatory, 4245 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 100, Arlington, VA. 22203-1606..