Karilyn J. (Pauling) Reiland

Karilyn Jean (Pauling) Reiland, 79, of Spring Valley, Minnesota, passed away peacefully in her sleep on April 7, 2020, at The Haven at Cottagewood Senior Communities, Rochester, Minnesota, of complications of Frontal Temporal Dementia.

Karilyn Jean Pauling was born February 27, 1941, in Spencer, Iowa, the first of six children of Martin and Rosella (Froh) Pauling.  Martin, an electrician, moved his young family often to follow jobs.  Karilyn used to say she’d lived in 14 different places by the time she was 18.  In 1959, she graduated from Washington High in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and then continued her education at Methodist-Kahler School of Nursing, Rochester, graduating in 1962.  She gained nursing experience at Cook County Hospital in Chicago; Seattle, WA; and Rochester State Hospital. 

She married Alvin (Al) Leo Reiland on June 30, 1963, at First English Lutheran Church, Spring Valley. She worked 34 years as a Registered Nurse at Community Memorial Hospital, Spring Valley, from the year it opened until the day it closed in 1997.  She then worked several years at The BirthCenter at Olmsted Medical Center in Rochester. 

Her nursing skills were also valuable as a dairy farmer with Al.  Her baby calf care was second to none.  Her attention to detail also lent itself well to handling the farm books.  She was a member of Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, Spring Valley.

Karilyn learned to ski as a teenager on “Big Mountain” in Montana while the family lived there.  As a young nurse and farm wife, she found a small ski slope just outside of Preston to enjoy.  Her two granddaughters will forever cherish their last ski trip with her just a few years ago.  With Karilyn’s siblings spread all over the US, there were many opportunities for great travel and great memories.  Al and Karilyn also enjoyed meeting and traveling with other dairy farmers and touring dairy farms. A highlight was the trip with other Minnesota dairy farmers to Australia and New Zealand. 

Karilyn is survived by her daughter Christine (Troy) Sukalski and their three children – Stephanie, Joseph, and Kenric - of LeRoy, Minnesota, and her son Scott (Kelly) Reiland and their two children – Carter and Madison - of Spring Valley; three sisters, Deanna Oakes, NY; Victoria (Robert) O’Neil, WY; and Carmen (John) Adams, MT; sister-in-law Mary Ann Pauling, TX; and brother-in-law David Rolfs, WA.  In addition, she is survived by many loving Reiland in-laws and her cousins, nieces and nephews.  

Karilyn was preceded in death by her husband of 55 years, Alvin Reiland; her parents, Martin and Rosella Pauling; her brother, Kenneth Pauling, a sister, Dolores Rolfs: a niece, Stephanie Oakes: and a brother-in-law, William Oakes. 

A memorial service will be held at a later date due to Covid-19 restrictions.  Karilyn’s cremated remains will be buried next to her husband’s at the Minnesota State Veterans Cemetery in Preston, Minnesota, at a future date as well.

Memorials may be made to Alzheimer’s Disease Research-Mayo Clinic, or the charity or church of your choice.  The family wishes to extend sincere thanks to all the staff who gently cared for Karilyn during her time at Wildwood Grove Memory Care, LeRoy, and Cottagewood Senior Communities.  A very special thank you to Dr. Luke Hafdahl of Mayo Clinic, whose compassionate care saw our family through the hardest of times with both Alvin and Karilyn as they each battled Alzheimer’s/Dementia.

Online condolences may be left at Hindtfuneralhomes.com

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