Visitation will be on Sunday, January 22, 2023, from 3 to 7 p.m. at Sturm Funeral Home, Sleepy Eye & will continue Monday from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, North Entrance, in Sleepy Eye.

Funeral Mass will be held at St. Mary’s Catholic Church-Sleepy Eye on Monday, January 23, 2023, at 10:30 a.m.. The service can be watched at https://www.facebook.com/stmarysleepyeye/live. The clergy will be Fr. Mark Steffl. Interment will be at the St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery in Sleepy Eye. Arrangements are with Sturm Funeral Home in Sleepy Eye. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.sturmfh.com.

Barbara was born to Alois & Barbara (Kojetin) Kodet on May 29, 1929, in Henryville Township, MN. She grew up on a farm close to a Czech community called Bechyn. Barbara married Alphonse L. Mages at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Bechyn, MN, on Oct. 29, 1946, which happened to be her dad & mom’s wedding anniversary. Barbara told her children that she only had two wedding dresses to pick from as it was shortly after World War II. It was October so she chose the one with long sleeves.

Barbara worked beside Alphonse for 18 years on the Morton farm before moving to their “dream farm” north of Sleepy Eye. They remained there until they retired & moved to New Ulm & then eventually back to Sleepy Eye in 2006. In all their years of farming they raised dairy cows, beef cattle, hogs, & chickens plus field crops. Barbara’s garden was huge with every vegetable & flower that could be grown in Minnesota. The basement shelves were lined with extensive half gallon & quart jars of canning as well as a freezer full of her garden produce. It was not unusual to put up 100 chickens several times during the summer with the help of her children. Barbara decided one January to keep track of just her bread making. For one month she baked over 110 loaves of bread, not counting the cinnamon rolls, fried bread dough, rolls, and buns. She said she didn’t want to know beyond that. She always made her bread from scratch without a recipe.

Barbara & Alphonse loved to dance. They were a pleasure to watch on the dance floor especially to “old time” and country music. Barbara wrote the words to a song, “Bless My Soul,” for Alphonse’s funeral. Barbara played the guitar in her teen years but put it down to raise her family. When she was in her eighties, she learned to play again. Her last performance singing and speaking was at St. Philip’s Catholic Church in Litchfield, MN at “Ladies Night Out” on December 1, 2022.

Barbara had many accomplishments that she accepted so humbly. She was the author of three books: “To Bechyn and Back,” “Dandelion Salad,” & “Golden Acres” which was named after the Sleepy Eye farm. Her books centered around her growing up years during the Depression & World War II, meeting Alphonse, & raising a large family. She started making rosaries for the missions when she lived at Morton & she was still making them at the time of her death. The rosaries started as simple string & plastic beads and evolved to beautiful crystal & glass beads that were works of art. Over her lifetime, thousands of rosaries have been sent to the missions & many hundreds to family and friends. Perhaps Barbara’s greatest accomplishment was raising such a large family. Barbara was a very gentle & patient mother & a great advice giver when you asked her. She was a strong “Pro Life” supporter & accepted all her children from God with loving & open arms.

Barbara was a member of the National Catholic Society of Foresters over sixty years, serving most of those years as President or Treasurer and/or a delegate to their conventions held all over the United States. When Alphonse was alive, they traveled to these conventions together & Alphonse enjoyed them just as much as Barbara did. Barbara was a past member of St. John’s Altar Society in Morton, MN & the Paxton Township Birthday Club. When she moved to Sleepy Eye, she belonged to the Christian Mothers at St. Mary’s Catholic Church & the Council of Catholic Women. She was a member of St. Rita’s Study Club. For many years, she made quilts to be auctioned off as a fundraiser for St. Mary’s Church. She never missed a year helping to pack bags of food for Food For Kidz.

Barbara loved Sudoku, crossword puzzles, jigsaw puzzles, “Duane’s game,” & playing cards. She loved any card game but especially Hand & Foot. She was extremely hard to beat, & her children tried to figure out her strategy, but she will have to let them know her secret when they get to Heaven. She was an accomplished seamstress. When her daughters were still at home & a catalog came with all the cute dresses, they would show a dress they liked to her, & she would make her own pattern & sew it for them, & it looked just like the one in the catalog. It was amazing to watch television with Barbara, especially “Jeopardy” as she could give the questions to all the answers.

Barbara was one of the founders of a family fund called “Forever Young-The Alphonse and Barbara Mages Scholarship.” This offers educational scholarships to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. These scholarships are given out each year at our annual summer get together called “Magesfest.”

Barbara enjoyed clerking for many years at auctions for Mages Land Company and Auctioneering as well as working in the bakery and deli for the former Ericksen’s grocery store in Sleepy Eye and at Cash Wise in New Ulm.

Barbara is survived by her children, Linda (Joe) Gall of Mankato, Dan (Arlene) Mages of New Ulm, Nancy Strate of North Mankato, Larry (Debra) Mages of Lafayette, our dear Jermayne by marriage (Duane) Kuss of Cold Spring, Rick (Jane) Mages of Sleepy Eye, Barbara (Kevin) Plath of North Mankato, Betty Jass of Lake Crystal, John (Cindy) Mages of Belgrade, Jeff (LeAnn) Mages of Luverne, Curt (Kathy) Mages of Hastings, Debra (Larry) Fischer of Sleepy Eye, Donna (Dean) Nelson of Grove City, Tom (Sharon) Mages of New Ulm, Mike (Amy) Mages of Sleepy Eye, & Lisa (Tony) Schmitz of Sleepy Eye; 66 grandchildren; 114 great-grandchildren & one on the way; her siblings, Al Kodet of Redwood Falls, Martha Serbus of Bird Island, Adella Mages of Olivia, & Mary Lou Butzer of Morton; sisters-in-law, Jean Standfuss of Faribault & Diane Schweinfurter of Redwood Falls; & brother-in-law, Clarence Mages of Willmar. Barbara loved her German family, Helmut and Birgit, Andi, Eleana, Rosalie, & Tobi Mages. She traveled to Germany with several other family members in 2012 & spent two weeks traveling Europe with them.

Preceding her in death were her husband of 63 years, Alphonse; children, Robert, Mary Beth, & Duane; grandchildren, Paula Mages, Douglas Mages, Michael Gall, & Teresa Campbell; son-in-law, Charles Strate; daughter-in-law, Maggie Mages; parents, Alois & Barbara Kodet; siblings, Emil Kodet, Lydia Serbus, Johanna Kodet, & Ed Kodet; brothers-in-law, Joe Serbus, Clarence Serbus, Ozzie Mages, Albin Mages, Myron Frank, & Jim Schweinfurter; & sisters-in-law, Rosella Kodet, Henrietta Mages, & Elaine Frank. Blessed be her memory.

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