Richardson, Eileen Marie (nee Roden), age 72 of Anoka, MN, formerly of Otsego, MN, passed away peacefully while surrounded by loving family members on February 20 ^th , 2020.

She had been a treasured resident of The Homestead of Anoka, and loved to bake and to pass out the mail to all of the other residents. She always had a smile to give out, and made sure to ask everyone about their days, to see if she could cheer them up if needed. She also was President of the resident council, and also was willing to give out advice on cooking, if she was asked (which was often!).

Eileen made many friends at The Homestead, and was one of the first to welcome newcomers to their community. You could say that she was the head of the welcoming committee. She enjoyed many things, like bingo night, baking club, movies, and of course visiting with others.

She came from a very large family. She continued that into her adult life when she married the love of her life, who had six children from a previous marriage. They added one more son to that family, and that made their family complete. Along the way grandchildren and great grand-children were added, as well as many nieces and nephews, and she loved them all. She enjoyed getting the whole family together, and would bake and cook for hours at a time (especially around Christmas time, when she would make her famous sugar cookies, and there was always enough for everyone), in order to make sure that no one would leave hungry.

She loved to fish, and loved it even more when one of her brothers would catch a bucket full of fish and have a fish fry. Going "up north" was a true treasure for her, whether to visit her parents when they lived in Emily, or visiting other friends of family members who had cabins.

She spent her whole life in Minnesota, and visited out of state once in a while, but was always ready to come back home. Her favorite season was Spring, when she could enjoy the pansies (her favorite), petunias, and lilacs when they bloomed. She would wait (somewhat impatiently sometimes) for Spring to arrive, and was ready to get her power chair out on the roads, as soon as it was warm enough, and dry enough to head out bumming.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Don; as well as her parents, Adelor and Dorothy Roden; her brother, Jerome Roden; her sons, Randall Richardson, Russell Richardson, and Robert Richardson; her great-grandson, Austin Olson; and 2 unborn grandchildren who were unnamed.

She is survived by her children, Ronald (Lynn) Richardson, Patrick (Gloria) Richardson, Kathleen (Kevin) Peck and Colleen (Gordon) Fanberg; her sisters, Elizabeth Vetsch, Marilyn (Sheldon) Barthel, Diane (Gregory) Boardman, Linda (Richard) Raymond, Janet (Marty) Anderson, and Susan (Steve) Louricas; as well as her brothers, Floyd (Bev) Roden and Kenneth (Pam) Roden; and sister–in–law, Bede Roden. She also leaves behind 21 grandchildren and 43 great grandchildren, as well as many nieces, nephews, and great nieces and nephews.

We are truly blessed to have shared in her life, and while we miss her terribly, we know that we will see her again in heaven someday.

Mass of Christian Burial will be Saturday (April 17, 2021) 11 AM at St. Stephen's Catholic Church, 525 Jackson St., Anoka.