Virginia (Kapalla) Minor

Virginia Minor, 87, from Grand Marais, died after a short illness Saturday, May 30th, 2020 in the afternoon at her home surrounded by her beloved family. She was born in Onaway, MI, July 3rd, 1932 to Elizabeth (Bruski) and Joseph Kapalla. “Ginny,” her nickname, had three older brothers, Edward, Floyd, and Chet. On August 21st, 1954, she married Carl Minor from Newberry at St. Paul’s Catholic Church in her hometown. They had four children together, Barbara (Jonathan) Mead, Kathryn (Greg) Kabe, David (Tammy) Minor, and Karen (Lionel) Wolf.

Virginia’s Catholic religion was very important to her and she lived a life of faith, love, kindness, thoughtfulness, and humor (when she finally got the joke!), and was proud of her Polish heritage. A quote her kids found she had copied down and left on her dresser is: “I began to understand...You weep at the loss of so beautiful a world and all those parts you will never be able to play again” (from Pat Conroy’s Beach Music). While this is so true, a poem Virginia has had on her kitchen wall is “Advice From a Tree”: “Stand Tall and Proud/Go Out On A Limb/Remember Your Roots/Drink Plenty Of Water/Be Content With Your Natural Beauty/Enjoy The View.” She followed all of the above thoughts, for sure. Virginia definitely had the proverbial “well-lived life,” together with Carl raising her children while also teaching kindergarten, first, and second grades in Grand Marais and other towns. Her family has many fond memories of going to their cabin on a small lake in Harrison. Ginny enjoyed the simpler things like her walks on the North Country Trail, reading a variety of books, writing the column “Minor Musings” for The Grand Marais Pilot for many years, and playing her favorite melodies like “Clair de Lune” on her piano, which she did so well just days before her passing. She had a beautiful singing voice all of her life, and if one of us mentioned a song, she’d sing a few verses of it. Just being with her kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids talking and visiting was probably her favorite thing to do.

Besides her parents and brothers, Virginia was predeceased by her husband. She is survived by her children and also her grandchildren, Erica Mead (Darren Young), Laura Mead, Adam Kabe, Elizabeth Mulry (Malcolm), Hank Minor, Wyatt Minor, Molly Minor, Lucy Minor, Brendon Wolf, and Shannon Wolf, as well as great-grandchildren Evelyn Young and Liam Mulry, with another, a boy, due in August.

Services will be held at Holy Rosary Church in Grand Marais on Thursday, June 4, 2020.  Visiting time will be from 12:00 noon until 1:00 p.m.   Father Marty Flynn will celebrate Virginia’s Mass of Christian Burial at 1:00 p.m.  Interment will be at the Holy Rosary Cemetery in Grand Marais.  She will be dearly missed by all who knew her.

In lieu of flowers, memorials in her name are suggested to be made to honor her love of reading and her church.  Please consider a donation to the Grand Marais Community Library or Holy Rosary Church.