Lorraine Catherine Wright

    Lorraine Chilton Wright was born in Burlington Township near Frazee, MN on August 12, 1919 to Howard (Hub) Chilton and Margaret (Robinson) Chilton.  Prior to 1930 the family moved to Osage where her father Hub ran the Chilton cash store in order to be closer to the Robinsons.  In 1930 they all moved to the newly acquired family farm near Ponsford very near the Linnell School.  Lorraine graduated from Park Rapids High School in 1937.    She taught at Linnell School and Boot Lake for a year or two, received normal school certification in Bemidji and then taught in Akeley.  In 1943 she joined the U.S. Navy WAVES.  During this time Lorraine ran a LINK Trainer (an early flight simulator and taught young naval officers how to fly in all types of conditions.)  In 1944 she received an Honorable discharge due to the illness of her mother and returned to the family farm.    In 1945 she traveled to Klamath Falls, Oregon where on January 7th she married her high school classmate Laurie Wright who was serving in the Marines.  Laurie was later transferred to the San Francisco area.  After his discharge he worked as an insurance adjuster and a son Joel and daughter Grace Anne were born in Berkley.  The family moved several times in the early years for Laurie’s job eventually buying their first home in Moorhead, MN.  Ever the educator Lorraine, found a way to raise a family and receive a degree from Moorhead State in elementary education.   She secured a position at Lewis and Clark Elementary in Fargo, ND in 1960.  This allowed Laurie to quit the insurance business and also attend Moorhead State receiving his degree in three short years.  Laurie then taught at Fargo North High for many years.  They both used their free summers to obtain Masters Degrees from Moorhead State.    In 1980 they purchased their dream retirement home on the Mill Pond in Osage.  They taught for two more years before moving to Osage.  It was also about that time that they purchased a mobile home in north Phoenix which allowed them to spend the colder months in warmer weather.    Laurie passed away in November 1988 but Lorraine continued to spend winters in Phoenix and summers in Osage.  She enjoyed many visits from Grace Anne with her granddaughters and time spent on the farm where her sister Anne often camped out with her extended family.  In 2009 she was forced to take up residence at Heritage Living center after a fall and the onset of dementia.  On November 14, 2016 she fell and broke her hip and just did not have the strength to fight off the after effects of surgery.    Lorraine is survived by her sister Anne Garrett of Colorado Springs; Son-in-law Dale Kind of Osage; Granddaughters Melissa (Jeff Donnelly) of Elko, MN; Tonia Kind of Bloomington, MN; Katie Kind Schultz (Erik) of Minneapolis and Tori Svoboa Hill (a daughter of her son Joel who was adopted); great grandsons Jacob Donnelly; Joey Donnelly; Luke Donnelly, all sons of Melissa and Jeff; Great grandson Tyler and great granddaughters Tianna and Torissa (children of Shannon).  There are also many nieces and nephews.    She was preceded in death by her husband Laurie;  Brothers; Bill, Neil and John; son Joel; daughter Grace Anne; and granddaughter Shannon (Wright) Willmeth.  She was a loving mother, sister, aunt, grandmother and great grandmother who will be dearly missed.  Most of all she would probably want to remembered as an educator. A Memorial Service will be held at 7:30 PM, Sunday, December 4, 2016 at Jones-Pearson Funeral Home in Park Rapids, MN with Reverend Paul McKibben officiating. Visitation will be held 5-7:30 PM prior to the service.  Interment will be at Riverside Cemetery, Osage, MN.         To leave online condolences or to view the video tribute please visit www.jonespearson.com