Katherine Elizabeth Swensen

LONG BEACH - Katherine E. Swensen, 101, a pioneer resident of Chinook, died Jan. 7, 2005, in Long Beach. Born July 23, 1903, in Chinook, she was the daughter of Axel and Anna (Juhl) Anderson. Her father had immigrated from Sweden and her mother from Denmark. She attended grade school in Chinook and her high schooling was at Pacific Lutheran University where she played basketball.

Following high school, she moved to Portland and during the 1930s she traveled throughout Europe. With the outbreak of the war imminent, she returned to the U.S. on the maiden voyage of the RMS Queen Mary. Settling again in Portland she met and married Roy Swensen. In 1943 they moved to Minnesota, returning to her roots in Chinook in 1952. There, she was a devoted wife, mother and homemaker. In the late 1950s she began working in the laundry at Ocean Beach Hospital, later becoming the head of housekeeping. Following retirement she stayed busy as a home health care provider well into her mid-80s.