Gladys Ella Harder

Gladys Ella Harder, age 94, passed away peacefully while sleeping on December 23, 2022 at Northwoods Village in Mishawaka, IN. She was born on May 30, 1928 to Henry G. and Helen (Falk) Harder in Mountain Lake, MN.

She married Leo J. Harder on September 26, 1959 at First Mennonite Church in Mountain Lake. Two daughters, Kathleen and Mary, were born to this marriage. They joined Gordon, Charles, and Lois, Leo’s three children from his first marriage.

Gladys attended country school for eight years and graduated from Mountain Lake High School in 1946. Following high school, she attended Mountain Lake Bible School for two years and Grace Bible Institute for one year.

She was baptized into membership by Pastor I.J. Dyck in 1945 at the First Mennonite Church in Mountain Lake where she remained a lifelong member. She participated on several committees and was a Sunday School teacher. Gladys was a committed Christian; she lived her faith and interacted with others with kindness, understanding, and grace.

For many years she worked in the administrative offices of the Basinger Clinic and then the Mountain Lake Clinic. She then worked for a few years at the Christian Day School. She also loved books and was fortunate to purchase the BookNook in Mountain Lake when the opportunity arose. After a fire destroyed the building and snuffed out her years of work in the store she retired and, with Leo, entered Mennonite Voluntary Service through which they served for several years in Fort Collins, CO and at the International Guest House in Washington, DC. Upon returning to Mountain Lake, and for years after, she served many hours as a volunteer at the Ten Thousand Villages store (Care and Share Shop) in Mountain Lake.

Gladys is survived by her children: Gordon (Eva Toews), Charles, Lois (Steve Rinehart), Kathleen (Merin Kouay), and Mary (Wes Mark), six grandchildren: Willmar (Hannah Neufeld), Elisabeth (Ramont Schrock), David (Rachel Byler), Jordan (Lindsey Edwards), Annie (Derek Reese), and Sophia, and 10 great-grandchildren: Elias, Amos, Reuben, Maria, Jonathan, Anna, Andrew, Annalise, Camden, and Devin. Gladys is also survived by her brother, Leslie, and sister-in-law, Gladys Ann (Baerg) Harder, and numerous nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Leo, her parents, her sister, Frances, and brother-in-law, Erwin Loewen. She was also preceded in death by her in-laws on Leo’s side: Theresa, Harry (Anna Harder), Jacob (Estella Loewen), Anna (Marvin Nickel), Lawrence (Kathy Suderman), Albert (Bessie Zimmerly), and Walter (Joyce Berg).

A Memorial Service is planned for April 22, 2023.