Lola Friesen
Obituary
Lola Mae Regier Wiebe Friesen, 94, went
to be with her Lord on Nov. 21, 2019, with family present at her
bedside at Kidron Bethel Health Care Center.
Lola is survived by husband, Jacob
Toews Friesen; children: Ruth Tanner, Mark Wiebe, Mary Patten and
Lois Koulouris; and brother, Robert Regier. She is also survived by
stepchildren, Priscilla Friesen, Jacob Friesen and Von Friesen; 11
grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.
She is preceded in death by her
parents, William H. Regier and Emelia Kintzi Regier; and husband,
Willard Waldo Wiebe.
Lola was born on Sept. 3, 1925, in
Mountain Lake, Minnesota. She graduated from Bethel College, North
Newton, with a degree in teaching home economics and taught for one
year before she married Willard Wiebe, Mennonite pastor, in 1947.
While serving the Menno Mennonite
Church in Ritzville, Washington, the couple welcomed Ruth, Mark and
Mary into their home. In 1956, they moved to serve the First
Mennonite church in Mountain Lake, Minnesota, where their fourth
child, Lois, joined the family. In 1964, the Wiebe family moved to
Freeman, South Dakota, to serve the Salem Mennonite church. While
there, Willard died of an illness in 1967.
After Willard's death, Lola and her
four children moved to Hesston. Lola worked at Prairie View Mental
Health Center in Newton until her marriage to Jacob Friesen,
Mennonite pastor, in 1972. After living in Elkhart, Indiana, for
several years, the couple moved back to Kansas and lived in North
Newton, near Lola's mother and brother and his family, and were
closely involved with the Mennonite community and Bethel College into
their retirement years. Lola and Jacob moved their residence to the
Kidron Bethel Community in 2012.
With her skills of cooking and sewing,
Lola took detailed care of raising her children in a well-run home.
Throughout her life, she involved herself in church activities
including teaching Sunday School and working in church libraries.
Lola had a concern for worldwide missions and, in 1960, was
privileged to travel around the world for three months with husband,
Willard, to visit Mennonite overseas mission sites.
Lola also volunteered at the Et Cetera
Shop in Newton as a weaver, and at the MCC Resource Center. In her
mid-years, Lola became an avid quilter and contributed many quilts to
the annual Kansas Mennonite Relief Sale. She also made quilts for
special family events, such as births and weddings. These quilts are
cherished by her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Besides being an avid reader, she enjoyed writing letters, and also
researching and writing family history. She traveled often with her
husband, Jacob, and kept detailed pictures and albums of their trips.
Memorial services will be held at 1:30
p.m. Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, at the Faith Mennonite Church in Newton.
Inurnment will be at the Mountain Lake Cemetery.
A memorial has been established with
Faith Mennonite Church or Mennonite Central Committee. Contributions
may be sent to Broadway Colonial Funeral Home, 120 E. Broadway,
Newton, KS 67114.
Condolences may be left at
www.broadwaycolonialfh.com.
