Vivian K. Finck
November 19, 1922 – September 18, 2010
Vivian Kathryn Finck, 87, of Brandon, SD, died Saturday, September 18, 2010, at the Helping Hand Assisted Living in Brandon.
Vivian was born on November 19, 1922, in Tyndall, SD to George and Katie (Kloucek) Britton. She attended country school and then graduated from Tyndall High School in 1941. She continued her formal training by attaining her teaching certificate from the Southern State Normal School in Springfield, SD.
On June 18, 1944, Vivian was united in marriage to Leonard Finck near Tyndall where he farmed and Vivian taught school until deciding to stay home with their children. In 1978, Leonard retired and the couple moved to Tyndall where Vivian continued working at the Good Samaritan Center, first in the laundry and then in the kitchen.
Vivian retired in 1993 but continued to enjoy gardening, cooking, canning and baking. It was not just the holidays that were special times when Vivian was in the kitchen. Her potato dumplings, Christmas candy, and pickled beets were blue ribbon winners to all of her family.
Vivian also was a talented seamstress and loved to crochet. In fact, she sewed numerous items of clothing for her children as they grew up. The girls would pick something out of the catalogue and she would make it for them. When the bowling alley opened in Tyndall, Vivian was there. She once even teamed up with daughter Penny for a city doubles tournament and won!
Vivian was a member of the Tyndall United Methodist Church and the UMW circle. She also belonged to the Tyndall American Legion Auxiliary.
Vivian will always be appreciated by her children for instilling a sense of independence in them. She taught them about life, taught them right from wrong, and taught them how to take risks. She then set them free to experience the world fully uplifted with her support.
Vivian will be missed by her husband Leonard, Brandon, SD; four daughters, Sharon (Les) Larson, Duluth, MN, Peggy Patterson, Brandon, Betty (Gary) Schuster, Raleigh, NC, and Penny (Dan) Martz, Omaha, NE.; one son Terry (Brad), Seattle, WA; six grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents and one brother, Dewey Britton.
A memorial has been established for Vivian to the Tyndall Good Samaritan Center.
Terry and Family, I am so sorry for your loss. The pain of losing something that cannot be replaced is sometimes unbearable, but with support of a loving family and friends going over all the good memories you shared with your wife, mother, and grandmother the healing process begins.
The Finck family has our condolences’. It is not easy to loose a loved one. I am the daughter of Clem Kloucek. He was Vivian’s first cousin. I do not live too far away as my family and I are near Colton, SD. My sister Ann and her family live in Florida and Carol and her family live in Scotland. Mom also still lives in Scotland. You are all in our thoughts and prayers.