Rhonda Kay Mack

August 30, 1953 ~ January 29, 2021

Rhonda Kay Mack, 67, Brandon, SD, was born to Barney and Helen (Leonard) Hoffman of Grand Junction, IA on August 30, 1953. Rhonda courageously battled lung cancer over the past two years, keeping her positive spirit throughout. She passed away peacefully surrounded by her loving family at the Dougherty Hospice House in Sioux Falls, SD on Friday, January 29, 2021.

Visitation will begin at 4pm, Thursday, February 4, 2021, at Brandon Lutheran Church with Funeral Services beginning at 6pm. Masks are required and social distancing will be followed. A Livestreaming link is http://brandonlutheran.org   In lieu of flowers, Memorials may be directed to the Avera Prairie Center for cancer patients in Rhonda’s memory.

Rhonda Kay Mack was born to Barney and Helen (Leonard) Hoffman of Grand Junction, IA on August 30, 1953. Rhonda courageously battled lung cancer over the past two years, keeping her positive spirit throughout. She passed away peacefully at age 67, surrounded by her loving family in Sioux Falls, SD on Friday, January 29, 2021.  She meant the world to her family and friends.

Rhonda grew up in Grand Junction, IA and graduated from East Greene High School in 1971.  She was the oldest daughter of nine siblings and was a caretaker at a young age due to the early loss of her parents. The bond she shared with her siblings was special and she loved sharing stories of her childhood. Her first managing job was at the Rippey Tap where she met Shannon and took her first of many rides on his motorcycle. They moved together to Knoxville, IA and were married on January 25, 1980.

While living in Knoxville, Rhonda first started her career in insurance with Principal Financial Group while commuting back-and-forth to Des Moines daily. Without missing a beat at work, she gave birth to two children, Randy (1980) and Cassie (1982).  She managed to balance everything as a working mother while making it look effortless. As her career continued to progress, Shannon’s job relocated the family to Minnesota; it was the first of three more relocations. Throughout their many moves, Rhonda leaned on her work ethic to build a successful career and her nurturing nature to build an extremely close-knit family – both were the pride of her life.

After their final move to Brandon, SD in 1996, Rhonda continued her career in health insurance and as the Mack family manager. Rhonda deeply invested in the relationships in her life. She loved creating special moments for her friends and family and poured her heart into planning vacations and holidays, including an annual family vacation. The memories from these times together are some of the most cherished for her family. Rhonda’s energy and sense of adventure was contagious. She was always up for a girls’ trip or a concert which she often enjoyed with her daughter, sisters or friends. And she and Shannon enjoyed music together throughout their life so much that Shannon took up guitar lessons and learned to play some of her favorite songs to serenade her.

Rhonda’s work ethic was an inspiration to both Randy and Cassie.  They were lucky enough to work for her at several of her jobs. Seeing her in her element set their standards for what good work exemplified. Throughout their lives, Rhonda led by example and was a constant cheerleader. She even helped Randy secure his first internship in IT which he credits for launching his career. 

After 18 years with DAKOTACARE, Rhonda retired at the end of 2018 as the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO). During her career she impacted countless people and was proud to call them her friends. She had ambitious goals in retirement including regular trips to Palm Springs, Mexico and trips to see her family. However less than two months later, she was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer.

The next phase of her life did not resemble what she originally planned, but she was a fighter and had an incredible oncology care team at Avera’s Prairie Center as well as her friends’ and family’s support behind her. Rhonda’s strength was admired by all. Her warrior spirit now shines through her children and granddaughters. Her empathy and compassion created lasting bonds with family and friends near and far. Rhonda continued to enjoy motorcycle rides with Shannon, family vacations and spoiling her granddaughters whom she deeply loved.

She is survived by her devoted husband of 41 years, Shannon; son, Randy (Seema) Mack of Chicago, IL; daughter, Cassie (Matt) Fehlen of Minneapolis, MN; 2 granddaughters, Sloane and Reese Mack of Chicago, IL; siblings, Gary (Susan) Hoffman of Jefferson, IA, DeAnn (Mike) Scharingson of Grand Junction, IA, Marty (Linda) Hoffman of Grand Junction, IA, Denise (Hugh) Gannon of Grand Junction, IA, Marc (Jacque) Hoffman of Grand Junction, IA, Tracy (Todd) Brelsford of Ogden, IA. 

She was preceded in death by her parents and brothers Mike and Rex Hoffman of Grand Junction, IA.

Rhonda will always be a guiding light for her family. In this difficult time, they celebrate her life and honor her legacy.