Adella Nichols Andersen

ANDERSEN A memorial service for Peggy (Adella Louise) Andersen, 96, will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 7, 2013, at Christ United Methodist Church in Rochester, MN.Visitation will be one hour prior to the service on Saturday at the church.Burial will be in Sunset Memorial Park in Minneapolis. Peggy died on December 1st, 2013. Adella Louise (Peggy) Nichols was born in Minneapolis on January 5th, 1917. She attended Cornell College in Mount Vernon, IA, and received a B.A. degree from the University of Minnesota in 1940. She was a member of the Master Piano Class of Dimitri Mitropoulos, conductor of the Minneapolis Symphony (now Minnesota Orchestra) and a renowned concert pianist. During World War II, she was a Grey Lady with the Red Cross at Veterans Hospital in Minneapolis. She married Dr. Howard Andersen in 1942. After World War II, they moved to Rochester where Howard joined the Mayo Clinic staff and she became involved in community activities. These included Civic Music Programs and the Olmsted County Nursing Advisory Board. She played piano for hospitalized patients, played organ at the Congregational Church, and was asked to play piano at numerous community events. She taught piano and instilled a love of music in her children and grandchildren. She was a member of the P.E.O. Sisterhood and the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She was a member of the Minnesota Orchestra Board in Rochester, and she was president of the Minnesota chapter of the American Medical Association Auxiliary (now Alliance). She was a recipient of the WCCO Good Neighbor Award. She was preceded in death by her husband in 2008 and her brother, Dr. Donald R. Nichols. She is survived by her children Patricia L. Andersen, Dr. Richard D. Andersen (Patricia) and Dr. Robert B. Andersen (Jill); and grandchildren Lauren Andersen Maloy (Mark), Elizabeth Andersen Ralls (Timothy), Carl Andersen, Lee Andersen, and Kathryn Andersen. In lieu of flowers, the family prefers memorials to Rochester Music Guild Junior Piano Division Scholarship, Rochester Symphony and Chorale, or P.E.O. Chapter CK. Ranfranz and Vine Funeral Homes, 5421 Royal Place NW, Rochester, MN55901 (507)289-3600 www.ranfranzandvinefh.com