Sylvia Dale Scanlan Kohl:

You are free.

Mom, grandma, great grandma, wife, dietitian – you are free from an infirm body.

Free to soar and touch us all; to mingle with those dear to you.

Free to listen or dance to “Tenderly,” being held by Dad.

Free to remind us about good nutrition (eat your liver and onions but I’ll serve you lobster tails and angel food cake for your birthday).

Free to sing to any music (Tony Danza, Frank Sinatra, big bands) without controller buttons to push.

Free to go anywhere and not worry about your hair (no more scarves).

Free to play bridge, play with Checkers the dog, play board games and talk the night away, watch Johnny Carson, Bill O’Reilly and hug the ones you love.

You are free and we celebrate your life which has meant so much to us all.

Sylvia Kohl, born May 16, 1921, in Volga, S.D. She graduated with a degree in dietetics in 1944. After marrying Louis P. Kohl II in 1949 and raising three children, Cheryl, Phillip and Michael Kohl, she practiced as a registered dietician first at South Dakota State University in Brookings, S.D., and then in the Chicago area, making sure thousands of elderly people at the Presbyterian Home and King Home had good nutrition.

She is survived by her three children and spouses, six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. She is also survived by her niece Kathy Pankonen and her nephew Dan Scanlan, along with numerous other nieces and nephews.

The family requests that memorials be directed to the Ecumenical Food Pantry at the First Presbyterian Church, 308 Walter St. Albert Lea, MN.

Sylvia died Saturday, March 24, 2012, at Mayo Clinic Health System in Albert Lea.