Raye "Pat" Chance

Raye Patricia “Pat” (Hilbelink) Chance died peacefully under Hospice care in Woodland Lodge, Fergus Falls, MN, on Aug. 1, 2013 at the age of 93. She was born in Hospers, Iowa, on March 17, 1920, the second of six children. Her father, Jake, was a carpenter, and the family moved to the Minneapolis area when she was young. As a young adult, she was a dancer (tap) and partnered with her friend Lorraine Heyer then briefly with her older sister, Ruth. On Feb. 24, 1940, she married Warren Phillip Chance, who was employed by Strutwear Company as a salesman. He joined the Seabees when the war started and went into the construction business when he returned. Being a carpenter’s wife and daughter, Pat preferred rearranging walls at home to rearranging furniture. In the early 1950s, Warren switched careers and went into the printing business. Pat worked with him operating all the equipment including the printing presses. One job she did was working on the light table preparing negatives to make printing plates. This was called stripping, so she was referred to as a “stripper,” which she though was kind of funny since she used to be a dancer (but not that kind of dancer). Pat’s biggest joy in life was grandchildren, in whose lives she was more a mother than a grandmother. She also enjoyed landscaping, anything that required physical exertion, and bird watching.

Pat is survived by her daughter Jane (Jerry) Geisinger of Fergus Falls; son Tim (Ann) Chance of St. Louis, MO; youngest sister Mimi (Ben) Vogel of Roseville; sister-in-law Marie Hilbelink; her first daughter-in-law Judy (Bob) Stamm of Plymouth; her grandchildren Lynne (Todd) Peterson of Mound; Shannon (Colin) McGrath of St. Louis; Paul (Mary) Schleicher of Rogers; Lisa (George) McComas of Marshall, MO; Jessica (Eric Anderson) Geisinger of Boston, MA; Mike Geisinger of Fergus Falls; and granddaughter-in-law Krista Langburg (Terry) Chance of St. Paul. Pat is also survived by her great-grandchildren: Jake Luby, Leslie (Jeff) Smith, Samantha Schleicher, Cole Peterson, Madelyn Peterson, Ava Chance, Caleb McGrath, Lyndsay McGrath, Lauren McComas, Ziaga Chance, Arianna McGrath, Henry McGrath; great-great grandchildren Ronan and Charlotte Smith; and numerous nieces and nephews and their many children.

Pat was preceded in death by her parents, Jake and Bessie (Smith) Hilbelink; husband Warren Chance; siblings John Hilbelink, Ruth (Randy) Norris, Edith (Lee) Ilgen, Eleanor (Reed) Bortz; her grandson Terry Chance; and her son-in-law Jerry Geisinger.

Pat was cremated by Olson Funeral Home of Fergus Falls, MN. The family will have a celebration of her life on Saturday, March 22, 2014 in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area.