Harriet Giesen

Harriet Mary Giesen (nee Barten) passed away on Friday, April 12, 2024 as a result of a stroke suffered at home.
Harriet was born to Hubert and Edna (Huss) Barten on February 5, 1938 in Union Hill, MN, the third of six children.  She grew up on a farm where her mom and dad raised corn, soybeans, and livestock, and had a big home garden.  Interestingly, she spoke German at home, before she spoke English.  It must have been growing up where she learned how to be the amazing cook and baker she was!  Every child and grandchild has a favorite dish or recipe of her’s and they are all different.
On June 13, 1959 Harriet married Frank Giesen in Union Hill, where they both were raised.  They grew up surrounded by huge extended families where they enjoyed playing euchre, dancing polkas, and big dinners with family.  Family always came first for Harriet.  This loving union brought forth seven children that Harriet and Frank raised in California, Indiana, and Michigan.
Although Harriet never had a career, she had plenty of jobs.  She worked in retail in a few shops downtown, she baked bread at a bakery, and made volunteering an important part of her life.  She spent hours upon hours as a Girl Scout and 4-H leader, teaching sewing, crafts, and more.  She volunteered for the Oaklawn Hospital Auxiliary in the gift shop and selling popcorn.  Most of all, she volunteered at her church.  She was involved in Rosary and Altar, fish fries, funeral lunches, and much more.  
Gardening was an important and favorite pastime.  Not only did she and Frank have a huge summer garden, but she canned and froze the many vegetables and fruits they grew.  Her homemade jams and pickles are legendary.  Her flower gardens were legendary as well!  She was a member of the Marshall Garden Club for many years and was on the Marshall Garden Tour.  If you needed an answer to a gardening question or a plant start or seeds, it was a good bet she had what you needed.
She set the best example for her children as a wife, mother, and community member.  Creating a beautiful and bountiful home was important to her.  There was always a homemade dinner, often with a dessert; and we all always came home to a clean house. Every holiday was special and she hosted nearly 40 family members with aplomb.  Nothing made her happier than to have her family nearby.
She loved her family.  She lost her husband, Frank, in 2018 after 59 happy years of marriage.  They had 7 children, 18 grandchildren, and 6 great-grandchildren.  If Harriet had a baby in her arms, life was good!
Surviving Harriet are her children, Heidi (Al) Beattie, Gretchen (Jim) Peters, Andy (Christine) Giesen of Marshall, Chris Giesen of St. Augustine, FL, Molly Giesen of Marshall, Sara (Keith) Kurowski of Niles, MI and David (Stacy) Giesen of Marshall, and her sisters Edna Weiers and Noreen Seurer of Minnesota and Darlene O’Brien of South Carolina. Her grandchildren, Jessie (Jeremy) Hackworth, Russ Beattie, Kelli Pash, Alexander (Leah) Peters, Emily, Madalyn, Natalie, and Simon Peters, Taylour (Jason) Boer, Noah, Calvin, Nathan, and Regan Fulmer, Thomas, Elly, and Andrew Kurowski, and Francis, Lucille, Beatrice, and Roman Giesen, along with great-grandchildren Gavin Mode, Vincent, Matthew, and Isaac Hackworth, Aspen Peters, and Henry and Riley Boer.  She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, Frank, her sister, Genevieve and brother, Roman.


Friends and family will gather at Kempf Funeral Home 723 US Hwy 27 N, Marshall, Michigan 49068 on Tuesday, April 16th from 5:00-7:00 followed by a rosary at 7:00.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be Wednesday, April 17th at 11:00 am at St Mary of the Immaculate Conception church in Marshall, followed by a funeral lunch at St. Mary Parish Center.  A private burial will be held at a later date.
If Harriet touched your life, please consider a memorial contribution to Oaklawn Hospital Auxiliary Popcorn Fund (116 E. Prospect St. Marshall, MI 49068) or Doris Klaussen Developmental Center (where her grandson Simon attends school) (408 East Jameson St. Battle Creek, MI 49014).  If you are unable to contribute at the funeral home, you may mail them to Kempf Funeral Home PO Box 519 Marshall, MI 49068.  Please indicate which memorial fund and the funeral home will distribute the donation.
Please visit www.kempffuneralhome.com to view the online obituary, to sign the online guest book or to leave the family condolences.