Frances "Lucille" Newton

Frances “Lucille” Newton, the daughter of Lloyd and Kathryn (Fennema) Engle, was born on March 4, 1921, at home, in Newton, IA.  She graduated from Fairmont, MN High School in 1939 and was married to Roland Edward Newton on October 12, 1940 at the First Baptist Church in Iowa Falls, IA.

Roland and Lucille farmed near Iowa Falls, IA until 1954 and continued farming, until 1965, near Fergus Falls, MN and Ashby, MN.  During this time, Lucille became a licensed practical nurse, receiving her training in Fergus Falls.  She worked at the Lake Region Hospital in Fergus Falls and the state hospitals in Fergus Falls and Anoka until she and Roland went into mission work in 1969.

Roland and Lucille served in the mission field as house parents for the children of missionaries for fifteen years, serving overseas, first  in Bolivia and then in Nepal.  They returned to the United States and worked with alcoholic women in Minneapolis and then spent three years on the Red Lake Indian Reservation at the Redby Lutheran Church before moving to Hibbing, MN.  They went overseas again in 1983, this time serving in Liberia.

Following their retirement, Roland and Lucille returned to Fergus Falls.  They moved to Battle Lake, MN and, later, to New York Mills, MN.  During this time, Lucille remained active in the church, holding leadership positions in several women’s organizations.

After Roland’s death in 2006, Lucille moved to Heritage Manor in New York Mills where she lived until 2010, when physical challenges necessitated a move to the Elders Home in New York Mills.  Although her mobility was compromised, Lucille remained active in the activities at the home and continued to give voice to her passion for evangelism.

Lucille moved to Perham Living in 2018 where she died on September 16, at the age of ninety-seven.

Lucille is survived by three sons and one daughter: Robert (Terri) Newton of Pepperell, MA; William (Judith) Newton of Eagan, MN; James (Mary) Newton of Ottertail, MN; Mary Newton of Plymouth, MN.  She is also survived by twelve grandchildren, twenty-seven great grandchildren, and four great-great grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband Roland; sister, Marjorie (Walter) Meyer; brother, Harold (Margery) Engle; and four great grandchildren: Alexander, Hillary, Dylan, and Brooklyn Newton. 

The family wishes to thank the staff at both the Elders Home and Perham Living for the care Lucille received during the past several years.

Memorials are preferred to Trinity Lutheran Church (P.O. Box J 424, 424 E. Gilman St., New York Mills, MN, 56567), Hospice of the Red River Valley (1701 38th St. S., Suite 101, Fargo, MN, 58103), or the charity of the donor’s choice.  

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