Jean K. Olson, 91, of Santa Rosa, California, died on October 10, 2010, after a brief illness. She was born on November 27, 1918, in Dayton Township, Waupaca County, Wisconsin, to Sam and Addie (Jones) Kratz. She was graduated from Clintonville, Wisconsin High School in 1936 and attended Ripon College. On June 10, 1939, she married Frederick V. Bland, Jr., who died on September 10, 1948. On December 16, 1950, she married Marvin H. Olson, M.D., and lived in Wittenberg and Schofield, Wisconsin, where Marvin had a general and surgical medical practice. From 1968 to 1971, the couple lived in Madison, Wisconsin, while Marvin completed a residency in radiation oncology. They then lived variously in Galveston, Texas; Madison, Wisconsin; and New Orleans and Monroe, Louisiana. In 1989, they returned to New Orleans, where Marvin died on July 6, 1991. In 1993, Jean moved to Santa
Olson, Jean K.
Rosa to be near her daughters. Marvin and Jean traveled extensively during the years of their marriage but she retained a deep fondness for Stratton Lake, in Wisconsin, on which her father had built a cottage that was the source of some of her happiest memories. Jean’s abiding love was her family, to which she was a devoted wife and mother. She was a consummate seamstress, homemaker, and lover of dogs – especially the boxers that were her companions in the years after Marvin’s death. Jean was also an avid bridge player, a sports enthusiast, a volunteer with various medical societies, and a supporter of Sonoma State University. Jean is survived by her daughters, Marne (Ruben Arminana) Olson, and Catherine (Nelson Pereira) Griffice of Santa Rosa and a son, Tom (Hope) Olson, of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin; by a brother, Howard Kratz, of Hendersonville, North Carolina; by three grandchildren, Robert (LeeAnn) Griffice, Susan (Greg) Baer, and Ginger Griffice; by three great-grandchildren, Riley Odom-Griffice, Zoe Baer, and Cooper Baer; and by dear family friends, Maritza Ponzes and Mikki
Routheau. Interment will be private. A memorial service will be held at a later date.
The family thanks the staffs of Brighton Gardens of Santa Rosa and of Memorial Hospice for their thoughtful and attentive care of Jean in her last illness.