Dolores J Gust

MONONA - On Friday, May 17, 2024, Dolores Juanita Gust (Pederson), age 90, left us to meet her many friends and family who have moved on before her. It seems fitting that a Norwegian girl would die in Stoughton (the most Norwegian town in Wisconsin) on Syttende Mai - the Norwegian Constitution Day.

Dolores was born on Sept. 7, 1933, at St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison to the most loving of parents, Edmund and Ethel (Ludington) Pederson. As an only child, she received the full, doting attention of her parents and they spoiled her rotten - if you knew her, this explains a lot ;). She graduated from Central High School in 1951 and continued to attend her class reunions throughout her entire life. The quote under her yearbook photo said “A friend to all. Her smile a call.” She loved to tell people about that.

At the age of 15, she met Larry Gust at the roller rink. According to her, all of her friends were jealous because he was so handsome. Her parents must have really liked him to allow her to date a 20-year-old man! They were married on Sept. 15, 1951, just eight days after she turned 18, and were together until Larry’s death in 1998. They spent the better part of 65 years living in Monona, making a detour into Madison for five years.

Larry and Dolores were married for 11 years before they were blessed with two daughters, first Julie and then two years later, Kim. We would like to say they were the greatest joys of her life, but that honor goes to her grandchildren. Four magnets, each with one of their pictures on it, held a prominent place on her refrigerator, arranged in order from favorite to least favorite, the most recent visitor always taking the top spot. She had hoped for great-grandchildren in her lifetime, and, although it didn’t happen, she knit a supply of baby blankets that are waiting for their arrival.

Dolores worked at the Forest Products Laboratory in Madison for her entire career. She was proud of her successes there, including leading the steno pool and training new “girls.” She considered herself quite the grammarian. (We hope this obituary lives up to her standards). But the best thing about the lab was the many, many special friends she made there, including her “sister,” Mary. The FPL was a special place unmatched by any business today. They were a family. Dolores was still attending the retirees luncheon every year.

In 1972, Dolores and Larry bought their cottage in Wautoma, and it became a gathering place for friends, family and friends who became family. Many of you were probably there at some point, maybe even enjoying a Stinger or two. Some of our family's best memories were made on Lake Irogami.

Dolores was the last one standing on all sides of the family. So many friends and family preceded her in death, more than we can name here. Following Larry’s death, she spent over 25 years without him. Her three beloved cousins also preceded her. She is with them all again and we can only imagine the shenanigans that are going on!

Although many are gone, even more who loved her are left behind. For a sassy 90-year-old, she had an overflowing garden of people who LOVED HER. Her daughters and their spouses, Julie and Dan Buchberger and Kim and Jim Wink; her four grandchildren, Jordan Wink and Tess Anderson, Emily Wink and Nick Bultman, Haley Buchberger and Megan Grimm, and Jenna Buchberger. Mary Haukereid, her “sister from another mister.” The Schulze family, her “family by choice.” Her Pederson family cousins, the Calder Clan. And friends too numerous to name.

A special thank you goes out to those who made it possible for Dolores to live on her own up until the last three weeks. You know who you are, the honored invitees to her 90th birthday party! She spent a very brief time dealing with aggressive cancer and was helped on her final journey by the staff at Agrace HospiceCare and the wonderful caretakers at Stoughton Hospital, especially Michelle, her nurse in her final days.

Funeral services will be held at ST. STEPHEN'S LUTHERAN CHURCH, 5700 Pheasant Hill Road, Monona, at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 25, 2024, with Pastor Larry Henning presiding, assisted by Pastor Nick Utphall. Visitation will be held at the church from 9 a.m. until the time of the service. Burial will take place at Roselawn Memorial Park. We will celebrate her life from 12 noon until 3 p.m. at THE MAPLE TREE, 6010 US Highway 51, McFarland, with a luncheon and beverages.  

We won’t say “in lieu of flowers.” Dolores always judged a funeral by the flowers. We do encourage donations to Underdog Pet Rescue of Wisconsin, an organization dear to our hearts. Donations may be made online at underdogpetrescue.org.

Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com.

Gunderson East

Funeral & Cremation Care

5203 Monona Drive

(608) 221-5420