We announce with great sadness the matriarch of the Hamann family has gone to her forever home to be with the Lord.
Mary Ann Molstein Hamann, passed away at the early age of 105 on Tuesday, June 2, 2026.
Mary Ann was born to Andrew and Andrea Molstein October 6, 1920, at home in North Prairie, Minnesota. A woman full of life, she started out as a spunky child always getting into mischief. Mary Ann grew up speaking Norwegian as a first language. Having to trek two miles every day to her country school where she was taught to speak English. Mary Ann then went to Lanesboro High School and graduated in 1939. After high school, she attended Saint Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, to become a Home Economics teacher. After her second year in college, WWII started and Iowa was desperately looking for teachers that could teach with an Emergency Certificate. Mary Ann was appointed as the high school Home Economics teacher in Garnavillo, Iowa. Eventually becoming the girls basketball coach, the pianist for the music department, and even the principal for a few years. She met her husband Gerald Hamann and they soon married. They started farming in Garnavillo with their family, quickly deciding to expand by buying a 300-acre farm by Lanesboro. They farmed for several years. Eventually their sons Mark and Paul took over farming operations. Today, the farm is owned by grandson Corey Hamann and son Paul. Years later Mary Ann and Gerald divorced and went their separate ways. They had seven beautiful children: David Hamann, Mark Hamann (Shari), Paul (Louanne), Daniel Hamann, James Hamann (Joellen), John Hamann, Mary Beth Sedgwick (her favorite son-in-law, Mike), nine grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
Mary Ann was known for her plentiful gardens, taking joy in watching it grow year after year; especially after completing her harvesting. Canning was a family effort; she loved to see her shelves full in the fall. Mary Ann loved to play cards, sew, craft, and work on puzzles with family. She also loved boating and listening to the waves on the water. She was an amazing cook, not only due to years of being a Home Ec. teacher but through her learning of traditional Norwegian cooking from her mother, and feeding her ever expanding family for decades. At one point in 1970, she entered a cooking contest with her Asparagus Cheese Bake and won first place! She even went to La Crosse, Wisconsin, with her dish for a televised bake off.
Mary Ann loved to travel. She went to Norway, Europe, Alaska and many trips to Montana to see her daughter and family. She was involved in her church at Fountain Lutheran for many years with Ladies Aid, Bible studies, and sang in the choir. Her faith in God is what kept her healthy and strong for so many years. She would often say, “God has a plan, we just don’t know it yet.”
Overall, Mary Ann’s devotion and love for her children was her main priority; always wanting the family to be together even if she couldn’t join. She instilled in her children the importance of loving one another no matter what. Throughout her life, she demonstrated enormous amounts of kindness, compassion, and a steadfast devotion to her beliefs; even in the face of adversity. Her legacy is marked by acts of generosity, a loving spirit, and the inspiration she brought to family, friends, and her community. She is preceded in death by her parents, brothers Gilbert and Arthur Molstein and son Mark Hamann.
Memorial service will be 11 a.m., Saturday, June 27, 2026, at the North Prairie Lutheran Church, rural Lanesboro. Visitation will be 10:30–11 a.m. prior to the service at the church. Burial will be in the church cemetery. The Mengis Funeral Home in Mabel is assisting with arrangements.
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