Funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, at Sturm Funeral Home in Mountain Lake, with visitation one hour prior to the service at the funeral home. Interment will be at Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis at a later date. Arrangements are with Sturm Funeral Home in Mountain Lake. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.sturmfh.com.

Irene was born on April 17, 1925, to Ben and Tina (Enns) Derksen in Watonwan County, Minn. She attended District 53 country school and later graduated from Butterfield High School in 1943.

In 1945, Irene moved to Fairmont, where she began working at the Fairmont Canning Company. She later worked for the Poultry and Egg Company and spent many years at the Mallon Egg Company, candling eggs. In addition to that work, she did housekeeping and babysitting for several families. She especially enjoyed caring for children.

In 1952, Irene married Paul Huston. The couple lived in Fairmont until 1966, when they moved to Windom. Irene worked for Fingerhut there until 1968, after which she devoted herself to babysitting, a role she continued in until 1976.

Paul passed away in Aug. 1975, and the following year, Irene married Joseph Simeroth. They made their home on an acreage northeast of Mountain Lake until moving into town in 1999. Joseph passed away on March 8, 2004.

Irene is survived by her daughter, Susan, and son-in-law, Charlie Foote of Wake Forest, N.C.; two sisters, Joanne Johnson of Windom, Minn., and Janet Hoehne of Minneapolis, Minn.; and many beloved relatives and friends across Calif., Texas, Ariz., Okla., and N.D.

She was preceded in death by her husbands, Paul Huston and Joseph Simeroth; her parents; her grandparents; her brother, Harry Derksen; and her sister, Agnes Sandberg.

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