Arla D. Henry

ARLA DEANE HENRY, age 86, passed away on Tuesday, April 1, 2025 at her home at Traditions of Owatonna. Her wish to see one more daytime snowfall came true as beautiful, fluffy snowflakes fell the entire afternoon before she joined our Dad in Heaven that evening.

Born on October 29, 1938 in Albert Lea, Minnesota, she was the daughter of Forest and Vivian (Dagner) Enderson. Arla attended school in Waseca, graduating with the class of 1957. She went on to attend the school of Medical Arts in Minneapolis, earning a degree in Medical Assistance. After moving back to Waseca to get married, she enjoyed working in the law office of Einer Iverson, where she made many friends. Shortly after starting a family a few years later, she became a stay-at-home mom, & that continued until her youngest was in middle school. She then worked for Waseca Public Schools until her retirement in 1998.

Arla married Philip Henry on her 22nd birthday on October 29, 1960 at Grace Lutheran Church in Waseca. They honeymooned in Colorado, & that was the beginning of a marriage full of many road trips & adventures.

Arla was a member of Grace Lutheran Church in Waseca, where she sang with the church choir for many years. In her younger years, she had a passion for quilting, crocheting, & basically all things “crafty.” She spent many years attending craft shows with friends & family, always returning home with holiday decorations, especially for Christmas. Our parents always had the house decked out that time of year. She also loved watching Hallmark movies (the Christmas ones being her favorite of course), soap operas, & crime shows. Reading was a big part of her life as well, collecting more books than we could keep track of over the years.

Traveling was another one of her favorite things to do until she was no longer able to. She loved her trips to Michigan to visit her sister & brother-in-law, & her other favorites were the Colorado mountains, Branson, & Las Vegas. She loved a slot machine! The biggest traveling highlights for her were Germany, Lake Tahoe, & a very special vacation to Hawaii that our Dad surprised her with for their 25th wedding anniversary.

She is survived by her three children, Shannon (Lynnea) Henry of Becker, Todd (Lisa) Henry of Frost, and Heather (Brian) Breck of Waseca, and her grandchildren Devin (Katherine) Henry of St. Paul, Garrett Henry of Becker, Carter Henry of St. Peter, Daniel Thornburg of Faribault, Adreana (John) McCollum of Owatonna, Jordyn Dale of Owatonna, Raegan Henry of Frost, Matthew Breck of Santa Maria, CA, & Olivia Breck, Elijah Breck, & Nolan Breck of Waseca, and seven great-grandchildren. She is also survived by her sister & brother-in-law Sharon & Paul Iverson of Houghton Lake, MI.

She was preceded in death by her parents in 1989 & 2006; husband, Philip, in 2019; grandson Tyler Henry in 2023; & many other relatives.

Private funeral services are being held. Burial will be at Woodville Cemetery in Waseca.