Brooker, Margarette Margarette Brooker of Rush City, MN, passed away on August 28, 2020, at the age of 90. Born on February 8, 1930, Margarette graduated from North Branch High School in 1948 and then enrolled at the University of Minnesota while also working as a telephone operator. On May 20, 1950, Margarette married Donald Brooker of North Branch. In 1958, Donald and Margarette moved to Rush City, where they eventually owned Don's Village Bakery. Margarette was an active volunteer in Rush City. The men returning from the war joined the VFW, so Margarette and other women in town formed the VFW Auxiliary to do community work. The local elementary had cub scouts but no girl scouts, so Margarette and other mothers created a group for after-school activities for girls. The village library in the early 1960s did not have many new books and was located above a laundromat, so Margarette and others lobbied the city council for an increased library budget and a space for the library in the new municipal building. In the early 1970s, Margarette and others in the Rush City Women's Club raised the first funds for an outdoor swimming pool. In 1973, Margarette and a close friend volunteered to co-chair the city's centennial celebration. They later chaired the annual "Rush City Spaghetti Days" festival. Margarette also served as the city's part-time librarian. Margarette was also an active member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church, where she served on the parish council, fall festival committee, and taught catechism. Margarette loved to sew, crochet, quilt, and do wool applique. She also had a knack for interior decorating. In the 1970s, she started going to farm auctions to find "hidden treasures" and was continually redecorating the house with the antiques and unique items she found along the way. After the bakery closed, Margarette worked at the Historic Grant House in Rush City, baking pies for the many tourists traveling up Highway 61 to the North Shore. Margarette filled her retirement years by working in the high school library and enrolling in community college classes. She volunteered right up until her death, cutting out obituaries for The Dragonfly Project, a grief-support organization, and sewing pandemic masks for the Lakewood Health System in Staples, MN. Margarette is preceded in death by her husband, Donald, who died in 1994. She is survived by her five children and their spouses, Lisa Kajer (Tom); Kim Hinrichs (Dan); Jana Bauer (Mark); Greg Brooker (Valerie Marquardt); and Erin Waters (Robert) . She is also survived by 13 grandchildren, 17 great-grandchildren, and many nieces, nephews, and friends. Funeral Arrangements are entrusted to Funeral and Cremation Service of Rush City, Olson Chapel. Check the website for arrangement details. Memorials preferred to the Rush City Food Shelf, where Margarette volunteered for many years.