Ruth Marian Ekstrand, age 95, of Pocahontas, passed away Saturday, June 24, 2023.

Marian Anderson was born on June 19, 1928 in Chicago, IL, to Oscar and Ruth Anderson. She lived in China with her missionary family until she was eight years old, and loved sharing the story of celebrating her eighth birthday on a boat returning from China. After a brief time in St. Paul, MN, Marian and her family moved back to Chicago, where she attended Von Steuben High School and graduated in 1946. She then attended North Park Junior College Bible Institute, graduating in 1950.

While at North Park, Marian met Wilbur "Web" Ekstrand of Pocahontas. They were married on April 11, 1953 in Chicago, and shortly afterward moved to Lake Charles, LA. There, Web was stationed in the Air Force where their first son Peter was born. In 1955, Web and Marian returned to Pocahontas to the family farm, where they welcomed three more children—Karen, Dean, and Donald. Web and Marian were faithful members of the Evangelical Covenant Church in Pomeroy, with Marian teaching Sunday school classes, singing in the church choir and helping lead vacation Bible school and Pioneer Clubs. In 1994, Web and Marian retired and moved into Pocahontas. Marian was involved in Christian Women's Club and led many Bible studies. They remained involved in their church and community, and Marian provided many rides for the neighbor children to Pioneer Clubs and to Twin Lakes Bible Camp.

No one was a stranger to Marian; her door and kitchen were always open. She especially loved hosting family, perhaps most of all her grandchildren. Her kitchen was full of pies and sticky rolls, and of course pepparkarkor at Christmas time. She enjoyed letting her grandchildren decorate her house for Christmas each year and hosted many slumber parties in her basement. Family was always important to Marian and she kept close contact with her siblings, nieces and nephews, joining them for regular reunions until 2019. You didn't have to be family to be important to Marian; if she learned you didn't have family, she treated you like her own.

Marian often shared stories about her time in China, which had a profound impact on her life. Being raised by two missionary parents, she saw the importance of foreign missions. Web and Marian supported many missionaries and loved to host them in their home or travel to visit them. Some of their most memorable trips were to visit their sons Pete and Don while they lived as missionaries in other countries, and taking a special trip back to China to see the place Marian grew up. Her passport had stamps from China, Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, Haiti, France, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, and Zaire (now DR Congo).

Marian spent countless hours knitting and sewing, making dresses, scarves, mittens and hats for her children and grandchildren–even for her granddaughters' dolls. In the later years, as following new patterns became more difficult, Marian still kept her hands occupied making hats she sent to a missions organization overseas. In total, Marian made over 380 hats to ship out.

Marian was preceded in death by her husband, C. Wilbur "Web" Ekstrand; her brother, Raymond and wife Carol Anderson; her sisters, Doris Jackson and Vivian Johnson; and her parents, Oscar and Ruth Anderson. She is survived by her children: Peter (Cindy) Ekstrand of New Smyrna Beach, FL, Karen (Don) Landin of Eagan, MN, Dean (Deb) Ekstrand of Pocahontas, and Don (Janet) Ekstrand of Yamanaka-ko, Yamanashi, Japan; her brother Edward and wife Cindy Anderson of Fridley, MN; brother-in-law Ernest (Vivian) Johnson, Stratford, IA; brother-in-law Richard (Doris) Jackson, Grand Junction, CO; as well as fifteen grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.

Memorials will be shared between the Pomeroy Evangelical Covenant Church and Twin Lakes Bible Camp. Please mail them to the Ekstrand Family: 58000 210th Avenue, Pocahontas, IA 50574.