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As received from Memorial Chapel Funeral and Cremation Service:
Evelyn Louise (Knudson) Albrecht, 87, went to be with the Lord and reunited with her husband Dean, and her son Craig on Monday, November 1, 2022.
Evelyn was born and raised in Ephraim, Wisconsin (Door County). She, along with her three sisters, worked in her parent’s resort hotel in Ephraim serving meals and cleaning rooms. Living on Lake Michigan, she enjoyed numerous water activities in her spare time. She graduated from Gibraltar High School in 1953.
Evelyn met her soulmate, Dean, while in high school. Dean left for the Marines, and she waited patiently for his return and their pending marriage in 1955. The couple lived in Milwaukee, and Rice Lake Wisconsin before finally settling in Houghton, Michigan in 1966. Evelyn was active in the Portage Lake United Presbyterian Church, played in the Portage Lake Womens’ Golf League, sold Avon, and made the best cherry pie ever. In 1978 they purchased the Haapala Insurance Agency in Chassell, Michigan. They were a fixture together in Chassell for over 37 years servicing the insurance needs of thousands of families throughout the greater Keweenaw Peninsula. Evelyn loved nothing more than spending time with and taking care of her family. Every Sunday was family day, when they would explore the Keweenaw with picnics to Esrey Park, Nordic skiing up Brockway Mountain or out to Estivant Pines and Labor Day Weekend was always reserved for overnights and golf at the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge. Evelyn and Dean also took their family to Florida for 15 years straight during the Winter for vacation, to visit her parents and to enjoy Disney World, beginning the first year it opened. Later in life, they enjoyed trips throughout the world, with highlights in Thailand, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Alaska, and numerous trips to Hawaii. Above all else, they enjoyed the simple pleasures of returning to Door County and home in the Keweenaw.
After Dean’s death in 2015, Evelyn sold the Haapala Insurance business and moved to Hamlet Village in Chagrin Falls, Ohio to be near her daughter, Melissa, and family. After 5 years in Chagrin Falls, she returned to the Copper Country moving into The Bluffs Assisted Living in Houghton and shortly after, in 2021, living her last 18 months at Gardenview Assisted Living in Calumet.
Evelyn is preceded in death by her parents Floyd and Laurel (Johnson) Knudson, her husband Dean, her son Craig, and sisters Grace and Elaine.
Evelyn is survived by her daughter, Melissa (Larry) Staley of Houghton, and grandchildren, Davis Staley, Abigail Staley, and Shannon Staley. And survived by a sister, Joyce (Glenn) Gerdman, numerous nieces and a nephew.
The family would like to graciously thank the caregivers at Gardenview and UP Health Portage Hospice that helped provide care and love to Evelyn during her last months of life.
A Mass of Christian Burial for Evelyn will be held 1:00 pm Friday, November 11, 2022, at St. Ignatius Loyola Catholic Church of Houghton with Fr. John Martignon to officiate. Visitation will be held on Thursday, November 10, 2022, from 5-6pm at the Memorial Chapel Funeral Home of Hancock, and on Friday from 12 noon until 12:45pm at St. Ignatius Loyola Catholic Church of Houghton.
Evelyn’s burial will be held at Forest View Cemetery in Houghton in the Spring of 2023.
To view Evelyn’s obituary or to send condolences to the family please visit www.memorialchapel.net.
The Memorial Chapel Funeral & Cremation Service – Hancock Chapel has been assisting the family with the arrangements.
