Idona Wolfe, 49, of Greenwood, Minn., a suburb of Minneapolis, died April 29 at Methodist Hospital in Rochester, Minn., from complications of breast cancer.
She was among five sisters who were featured in a Herald article, published last June, about their experience after they learned they may be carriers of the BRCA gene that greatly increases the risk of developing breast cancer.
At that time, she had tested negative for the BRCA gene but was facing her second battle with breast cancer, she said.
Her sisters are Barb Jensen, Susan Kraft and Jolla Streifel of Grand Forks and Carrie Smith of Burke, Va.
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Her husband Jamie Wolfe, whom she married in October, “has been a rock for her,” said Jensen. “He’s been the best caregiver we could have ever asked for.”
Hundreds of Facebook posts attest to how her giving nature changed others’ lives, Jensen said.
“Idona shared her cancer journey with family and friends in such a positive and graceful way,” Jensen said. “She showed that you can live a good life with cancer. She turned every piece of negative news into positive. Her motto was, ‘Live, laugh, love.’ She really was an inspiration.”
Mrs. Wolfe was preceded in death by her parents, Henry and Delores Streifel, and a brother, Tim Streifel. In addition to her sisters, survivors also include daughters Paige Mikkelsen of Grand Forks and Marit Mikkelsen of Tempe, Ariz.; stepchildren Tyler Wolfe, Iowa, and Rachel Wolfe, the Twin Cities, and brothers Cy Streifel, Esmond, N.D., and Jeff Streifel, Cando, N.D.
A prayer service is planned for 7 p.m., May 5 and funeral at 1 p.m., May 6, both at Holy Family Catholic Church. Grand Forks.
Idona Wolfe will be buried next to her parents in Esmond, N.D. The interment ceremony is tentatively set for noon, May 7.
