Summarized from the Austin Daily Herald, Jan. 25, 2002: Irene Henrietta Barnum, 87, of Brownsdale, Mower county, Minnesota, died Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2002, at Comforcare Care Center, Austin, Minnesota. She was born Feb. 19, 1914, to Henry and Sophie (Hoeper) Holst in Lansing Township. She received nurses training at Rochester State Hospital, passing state boards to become a registered nurse in 1935 and worked in area hospitals. On June 9, 1937, she married Charles Barnum in Mason City, Iowa. They farmed in Red Rock Township for 60 years. In 1960 Irene returned to nursing as a charge nurse at Comforcare where she worked until her retirement in 1986. She served on the Mower County Mental Health Board and was active as a volunteer with Red Cross clinics, in public school clinics and at the Brownsdale Public Library. She was a member of the Brownsdale United Methodist Church for over 50 years and the eldest member of the Brownsdale Study Club. Survivors include sons, Dean (Dorothy) Barnum, Clyde, N.C.; Bruce (Jackie) Barnum, Golden, Colo.; six grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; brother, Vernon Holst, Stacyville, Iowa; sisters, Lois Nelson, Hastings; Jean Kuhlman, Sargeant. She was preceded in death by her parents; husband; brother, Raymond Holst; sister, Ione Staples. Interment: Greenwood Cemetery, Brownsdale.