Tawnia Jepma

Memorial services for Tawnia Jepma will be private family services for immediate and extended family on Monday.  A public visitation will be held on Sunday, December 20, 2020 from 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. at the Pedersen Funeral Home in Morris.  A public graveside service will be on Monday, December 21, 2020 at 11:45 a.m. at Lakeside Cemetery in Hancock.  Reverend Bruce Hanneman will be officiating.

There will be a live stream of Tawnia’s service starting at 11:00 a.m. Monday, December 21th, 2020. To view the service, go to the Pedersen Funeral Home website, scroll to the bottom of Tawnia’s page, and click the link.

While maintaining social distancing guidelines, we are now able to accommodate gatherings of up to 250 people. The use of face masks by attendees is required, and we will continue taking the necessary steps to keep our facility clean. For those who prefer or require continued precautions, webcasting and/or livestreaming is available in most situations.

Tawnia Marie Berget was born on March 16, 1963 to Orville and Marjorie (Toop) Berget in Morris, Minnesota.  She was raised in Hancock and was baptized on April 14, 1963 and was confirmed on May 8, 1977 at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Hancock.  Tawnia received her education in Hancock, graduating with the Hancock High School Class of 1981.  Following her graduation, Tawnia began working as a Certified Nursing Assistant at West Wind Village.  On August 27, 1983, she was united in marriage to John Jepma at St. John’s in Hancock.  They made their home in the Minneapolis area where she worked as a CNA at the Trevilla of Golden Valley.  After the birth of their first daughter, Brittni, they decided to move back home to Hancock in 1985 and later completed their family with the birth of Kelsey.  Tawnia worked at Prairie Community Services and REM until a back injury at work.  She was unable to continue to care for others in a home care setting,but continued helping others as a paraprofessional at the Hancock school.

Tawnia was a member of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Hancock.  She was a fan of watching the Minnesota Twins and Vikings, and Days of our Lives.  Tawnia enjoyed playing rummy and doing word search puzzles, and going for the occasional casino run.  Most importantly, Tawnia cherished the time she was able to spend with her family, especially watching her grandson, Haydin, play baseball.

Tawnia died unexpectedly at her home on Thursday, December 17, 2020, she was 57 years old.

She is survived by her husband: John Jepma of Hancock; daughters: Brittni (Doug) Siebenaler of Faribault and Kelsey (Nate) Lindholm of Welch; grandchildren: Haydin, Adeline, and one to come in May; two sisters: Ramona (Dean) Rohloff of Hancock and Dorinda (Marty) Thielke of Holloway; one brother: Kyle (Karen) Berget of Morris; sisters-in-law: Stephanie Berget of Hancock and Cheryl (Mike) Miller of Hancock; brothers-in-law: Tom Wente of Holloway, Garrit (Sherrie) Jepma of Glenwood, Dennis (Carrie) Jepma of Hancock, Daniel (Dawn) Jepma of Starbuck and Sam (Julie) Jepma of Columbia Heights and many nieces and nephews.  She is preceded in death by her parents, Orville and Marjorie; siblings: Kerry Berget and Chrysta Wente; and mother-in-law and father-in-law, Myrtice and Donald Jepma.

Pedersen Funeral Home in Morris is in care of arrangements for Tawnia.