Pearl Pike

PEARL PIKE was born weighing only three lbs. on April 28, 1920 to Arthur L. and Alma P. (Eikmeier) Van Doren on her maternal grandparents’ homestead in western Pipestone County, Minnesota. She attended a country school and Pipestone High School. After graduating, she worked as a telephone operator. On July 9, 1942, she married Merle M. Pike of Ruthton, Minnesota. At the time, Merle was serving in the U. S. Army and they lived on an Army base in Bainbridge, Georgia, where their first child was born. After the conclusion of the war, they lived in Pipestone and raised their five children. When they retired, they moved to an acreage north of Holland, Minnesota where they lived for 20 years, enjoying winters in Arizona. In 1997, they were among the first group of residents to move into the newly constructed Ridge View Estates congregate living facility in Pipestone.

As her children were growing up, Pearl was a troop leader in cub scouts, brownie scouts and 4-H. She always was an active member of Peace United Methodist Church and belonged to the United Methodist Women, twice serving as President. They enjoyed serving as church camp counselors at Decision Hills near Spicer, Minnesota for many years. She also worked for a time as a clerk in the Soil Conservation Office and enjoyed helping to map the different types of soil and terrain in southwest Minnesota. Pearl always enjoyed joining neighbors for coffee and nurturing longtime close friendships, whether in Pipestone or near Holland. With nine apple trees in the yard, Pearl knew how to bake delicious “apple everything” especially apple pies. Throughout her life, she crocheted, knitted and stitched many creative and useful pieces, including an afghan for each of her children and grandchildren.

In early May, 2008, Pearl became a resident of Ashton Care Center. When that facility closed, she relocated to the Golden Living Center in Slayton. In December, 2009, she was able to return to Pipestone, which she considered to be her home, as a resident of the Good Samaritan Communities of Pipestone. On Friday, January 27, 2012, she entered the Pipestone County Hospice House where she died on Monday, January 30, 2012, at the age of 91 years, nine months and two days.

She is lovingly remembered by her five children, Judy Miller of Pipestone, Minnesota, Sandra (J.R.) Raichel of Clayton, North Carolina, Nathan (Barbara) Pike of Lake City, Minnesota, Dorothy Pike of Pipestone, Minnesota, and Elaine Storberg of Charlotte, North Carolina; seven grandchildren; seven great-grandsons; her sister, Violet Utley of Santa Maria, California; and her brother, Duane (Joyce) Van Doren of Fountain Valley, California. She was preceded in death by her husband and her parents.