Obituaries

Anthony John “Tony” Pecha, age 70 of Tower died Thursday, March 3, 2022 of natural causes while snowmobiling.
He was born April 4, 1951 in Soudan, the son of and Anthony and Rose Marie (Kalsich).
Tony grew up in Soudan and was a graduate of Tower-Soudan High School; where he was the school’s leading basketball scorer, scoring over 1,000 points back before the three-point shot!
He received his Associate in Arts degree from Vermilion State Junior College in 1971. While at Vermilion, Tony was a two-year starter for the Ironmen basketball team earning All-State Team and All-State Tournament Team honors. He attended St. John’s University in Collegeville, MN earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry with minors in Math and Secondary Education.

William "Bill" Makela, formerly of Ely, passed away on Friday, March 4, 2022 at Southview Acres Healthcare Center in West St. Paul. Family arrangements have been entrusted to Kerntz Funeral Home of Ely.

RAYMOND ANTON PECHEK
Age 90 of Buffalo, MN passed away peacefully on 2/16/22. He was a dear sweet man with a wonderful sense of humor until the very end. He was born on 1/6/1932 to Anthony (Tony) & Frances (Fannie) Pechek in Ely, MN. In recent months he was a resident at Havenwood Memory Care facility, in Buffalo, MN.
Ray grew up in Ely where he played basketball in high school and got the nickname Ribsy. During the summers he was a fishing guide for Rom outfitters. He graduated from Ely Memorial High School in 1949. He earned his Associate of Arts degree at Vermilion Community College in Ely, in 1951 and a Bachelor of Science Degree from St. Cloud University in 1953 where he met the love of his life Sharron Bahneman.

(Laveta) Anne Swenson, age 85, known as Anne, died at Virginia Regional Medical Center in Virginia, Minnesota on March 2, 2022.
She was born on March 27, 1936 in Blue Island, Illinois to Golda (Standard) and Eugene M. Swenson of Hazel Crest, IL.
Anne was the mother of two children: Nicholas and Sandra Anne.
Anne Swenson was the publisher of the Ely Echo weekly newspaper from 1977 to 2021. She had also been employed as a waitress, payroll clerk, retail clerk, camp counselor, crafts instructor, book buyer, record buyer, assistant store manager, writer and columnist. Her column in the Echo was known as “From the miscellaneous drawer.”
During her lifetime she resided in Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Indiana, California and Rome, Italy. She found her true home in Ely, Minnesota.

Maxine Popovich, 98, formerly of Ely, passed away on February 28, 2022, at Carefree Living Assisted Living in Virginia, Minnesota.
Maxine was preceded in death by husband Mark and daughter Caroline.
She is survived by daughter Judith Vimont, four grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren.
Arrangements have been entrusted to Kerntz Funeral Home of Ely, with interment at Fort Snelling National Cemetery at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in her memory may be made to a charity of the donor’s choice.

Cynthia M. Shober, age 63, passed away peacefully on February 20, 2022 with her family by her side after a 40 year struggle with Multiple Sclerosis.
Cyndy was born in Ely on September 5, 1958 and graduated from Ely Memorial High School in 1976 after which she moved to Minneapolis.
Cyndy was preceded in death by her father, Albert F. Shober. She will be sadly missed by mother, Rose Marie Shober; Daughter, Sarah Watson (Leonard) and 5 grandchildren; Sisters, Cathleen Shelstad (Krist) and Carrie Shober; Brothers Albert J. Shober (Sherri) and Daniel Shober (Linda). Cyndy will also be missed by her numerous nieces, nephews and 1 grandnephew.
We will all miss Cyndy’s brave and bright smile which she never lost no matter how difficult the struggle became. She never complained or gave up until she was called to do so. We will all remember her and love her for what she endured so bravely.

William "Bill" Koski Jr., formerly of Embarrass, passed away on Monday, February 28, 2022 at The Waterview Woods in Eveleth. Familly arrangements have been entrusted to Kerntz Funeral Home of Ely.

It is with a sad heart that we announce the passing of Mary Ann “Eva” Chelberg, age 75, of Aiken, SC, on Friday, February 18, 2022, at Aiken Regional Medical Center.
A native of Ely, MN, Mary Ann was the daughter of Michael and Mary Evenocheck. She graduated from Ely Memorial High School and attended the University of Minnesota - Duluth where she studied theatre. She later went on to become President & CEO of Daily Printing, Inc., one of Minnesota’s largest printing companies; she retired in 1999 and then moved to Aiken, SC.
Mary Ann married the love of her life, her best friend and soulmate, John Robert “Bob” Chelberg in 1992. They were two-peas-in-a-pod – having the time of their lives together. They enjoyed daily lunch time cribbage games, spending time with family, traveling, relaxing at the cabin and just having fun.

Phyllis Olson, 77, of Ely, passed away on Thursday, February 24, 2022 at Carefree Assisted Living in Ely.

Phyllis was born in Winton on December 18, 1944 to Joseph and Mildred Koschak. Phyllis graduated from Ely Memorial High School. In 1967 she married Richard Olson and together they raised a son, Brad, and a daughter, Sarah.

Phyllis worked at the school for 37 years teaching special education. She was a lifetime member of the American Association of University Women where she served on the state board. She served as the State Bylaws Chair for three terms and was also the State Nominating Committee Chair for one term and the State Vice President of Educational Funds for two terms.

She enjoyed socializing with her friends at bunco, coffee time and bible study. She also enjoyed traveling to many places across the world with family and friends with her favorite trip being to Egypt.

David Hart, 72, of Maple Grove, passed away in Ely, on February 18, 2022. Family arrangements have been entrusted to Kerntz Funeral Home of Ely.