Mary Lou Hallberg

Mary Lou Hallberg of Clark, SD passed away on April 14 at her farm after a brief stay at Prairie Lakes Hospital.

Visitation will be on Wednesday, April 20 from 5:00 to 7:00 PM at the Furness Funeral Home in Clark, SD. Services will be held at the United Methodist Church in Clark at 11:00 AM on Thursday, April 21, 2022. Officiating will be The Reverend Mark Tracy with Dorothy Fuller as organist and Elizabeth Whitman Linneman as soloist.  Her 8 grandchildren will serve as casketbearers; Erin Sharp, Benjamin Sharp, Jesse Hattervig, Ashley Hallberg Deeb, Mackenzie Hallberg Jensen, Shannon Hattervig, Jordan Hallberg, and Jarrod Hattervig.

Mary Lou was born to James 'Ray' and Eva (Morrison) Arthur on July 4, 1930, in Perkins County on a homestead established by Ray and Eva. She, her brother, and sister used to collect cow chips to burn; as wood was scarce on the prairie. Eventually the family moved to Day township in Clark County where Mary Lou attended country school. She attended Clark High School and graduated in 1948. Mary Lou attended Northern Normal and received her teaching certificate.

On August 26, 1950, Mary Lou married Edward Hallberg at the United Methodist Church in Clark. Mary Lou and Ed began farming near Garden City and then on a farm south of Clark. Later they rented a farm near Naples for four years where Mary Lou taught in a country school for a year and substituted in the Hazel School District. In 1961 Ed and Mary Lou bought a farm in Darlington township southwest of Clark. Within a few short years, Mary Lou's green thumb and creativity had turned the yard into a showplace of flowerbeds and gardens.

Mary Lou and Ed planted hundreds of trees and every year, Mary Lou put up jars of chokecherry, plum, and elderberry jelly for her family and everyone she knew who would appreciate them. Mary Lou was an excellent cook and baker and loved to feed large groups of family and friends. In her later years, she would bake goodies and take them to the nursing home for residents who many times were younger than she was.

After her kids graduated, Mary Lou was head of the quality control lab at the potato processing plant in Clark for several years.  After that, Mary Lou worked as a nutrition counselor for the WIC program, for many years.

Mary Lou was active in her church and the American Legion Auxiliary where she served as president at one time. She was active in the SD Women's Farm Bureau and was honored in 1994 as the SD Women's Farm Bureau woman of the year. She was an active member of The Happy Bunch Club until the time of her death. She was an avid supporter of 4-H and rodeo. Her kids and grandkids participated and Mary Lou and Ed spent many days traveling to shows and rodeos.

Mary Lou's greatest pride and joy was her family. She is survived by her sister, Lois Rykhus of Clark; her daughters, Barb Hallberg of Nemo, and Deb (Jack) Hattervig of Rapid City, and her son, Tom (Janet) Hallberg of Clark. Her grandchildren include Erin (fiance Emily Dykstra) Sharp of Sioux Falls; Benjamin Sharp of Hot Springs; Jess (Mo) Hattervig of Sheridan, WY; Ashley (Robert) Deeb of Grosse Point, MI; Mackenzie (John "JF") Jensen of Sioux Falls; Shannon Hattervig of Rapid City; Jordan (Aleigha) Hallberg of Clark; and Jarrod (Spencer) Hattervig of Rapid City. Mary Lou's great grandchildren are: Alex (MacKenna) Sharp of CA; Wesley Sharp of AZ; Bennett, Lyddia, Pierce, and Konley Jensen of Sioux Falls; Blakely, Emersynn, Warick, and Kahlder Hallberg of Clark; Lula and Majid Deeb of Gross Pointe, MI; Sylvie Hattervig of Rapid City; Evan and Ava Hattervig of Sheridan, WY; and Conrad, Mateo, and Nakita Sharp of Hot Springs and New Zealand. Mary Lou also has 3 great-great grandchildren of CA.

Preceding her in death were her parents, husband Ed in 2015, Barb's partner of 38 years, Jim Richard Tatge, and a brother Jim (Eileen) Arthur.

Funeral arrangements are announced by the Furness Funeral Home at Clark where there is an on-line registry at www.furnessfuneralhome.com