Delores Dornbusch

Delores Esther Rapatt was born on November 19, 1930 at home in Corliss Township, rural Perham.  Her parents were the late Emil and Hulda (Mischke) Rapatt.  Delores graduated from District #225 Country School in Corliss Township.  In her youth, she taught herself to play piano and guitar and loved music and dancing.  Delores completed a correspondence art school through Washington School of Art and also loved working with wood and stone. As a young adult she painted murals in homes and worked as a mother’s helper for several families. Delores enjoyed the farm life, assisting in building barns, silos and working the horse teams along with hunting, trapping and fishing.  She enjoyed church services, singing in the choir and teaching Sunday School and had an incredible recall of people and events.  

On August 28, 1955 Delores was united in marriage to Raymond Mervin Dornbusch at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Corliss Township. Their marriage was blessed with eleven children.  Delores and Raymond raised their family and operated a dairy farm their entire life in Corliss Township with Raymond’s brother, Robert.   Raising her family, Mom was a creative cook, baker and always had a great after school snack. She enjoyed the outdoors as she had a green thumb and loved her garden, flowers and hatching poultry.  Mom very much-loved people and delighted in their own uniqueness and she commonly defended the undefendable. Delores loved drawing, painting, gardening and treasured every one of her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews.  Delores enjoyed listening to the radio and TV worship.  Billy Graham was her all-time favorite.  She was a witness of God’s love to her family and instilled in her children a strong faith. Raymond passed away on December 19, 2014. On May 4, 2018 Delores passed away peacefully at her daughter, Maryann’s home in Vergas, Minnesota, at 87 years of age. She will be dearly missed by her family and friends.

Preceding Delores in death were her parents; a stillborn son; grandson, Levi Dornbusch; sister, Viola (Kenneth) Hendrickson; brother, Willmar Rapatt; brothers-in-law: Harry (Blanche), Vernon, Roy (Betty), Elmer, Robert, Loren (Carol); sisters-in-law, Doris (Melvin) Ruther, Betty Dornbusch and June Dornbusch.

Delores is survived by her children: Lillian (Arlin) Ziemann of Bend, Oregon; Rosalie (Jerome) Dalman of Vergas; Duane (Lynette) Dornbusch of Fergus Falls; Maryann (Cory) Mingo of Vergas; Donald (Sheri) Dornbusch of Perham; Daniel Dornbusch of Audubon; Randall (Wendy) Dornbusch of Perham; Gary (Connie Weissner) Dornbusch of Perham; Beverly (Brad) Boutiette of Perham; Jaymey (Corrie) Dornbusch of Fergus Falls; Braydee (Hunter) Briard of Detroit Lakes; special daughter, Karen Dornbusch Wahl of Blaine; 31 grandchildren; 13 great-grandchildren; sister-in-law, Donna (Arnold) Knickrehm of Perham; brother-in-law, Lavern Dornbusch of Perham; many other relatives and a host of friends.

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To My Mother

You may not have been able to drive us around, or go

 shopping with us down town, but what you did do was always let

us know that you loved us and told us just so. You always

 listened when we had a problem, there wasn’t anything I couldn’t

 say to you, barred by insecurity or fear, but always a gentle

reassuring and advising ear.

 The quirky, silly, funny things you’d

say-always helped brighten my day.

I remember winters when I’d come in from the cold,

 homemade hot cocoa there’d be, and towels heated in the

oven, just for me! You grew up with all things done fancy,

crafty and appealing, what change of plans your new life would

 be dealing. From ice skating, guitar and piano to a new life,

 eleven children and the role of a wife.

You may have been a Rembrandt, Picasso or a Michael

Angelo, even art was in the homemade play dough. My favorite

was the sculpture of faces you’d do as you did impressions of

others to listen to. You could see the beauty and possibility in

things and each human soul –that others deemed worthless as a whole.

You taught me how life came from God, and into my bedroom

 you’d trod –late at night –especially if it had been a datenight,

 you’d come read me a devotion. That’s something I’ll put for my

 own into motion. As a girl she taught me to have compassion,

and that she did not approve of the latest teenage fashion.

Compared to things other kids had, we had less, but

because of a mother who made think of others much poorer and

 in distress, we thought we had been blessed—to live a life clean,

proper, or structured we did not, but kids that were ungrateful,

self-serving, cruel hearted, were things we were not.

I’ll never forget what you passed down to me

because my mother forever you’ll be.

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