Irene G. Fleming, 98, Little Falls, died Wednesday, July 13, 2005, in Little Falls. Her husband, Dana, was a former Superintendent of Schools in Hills.She was buried in Atwater. Irene Fleming was born on Aug. 11, 1906, in St. Louis, Mo. At an early age she and her mother took a paddleboat from St. Louis to Minneapolis and then moved to South Dakota where her mother became a housekeeper for a widowed man and father of four boys. They moved back to Minneapolis when she was in the fifth grade. She later graduated from Central High School in Minneapolis. Among her classmates were movie actress Ann Sothern (Harriet Lake) and actor Eddie Albert (Heiberger). She attended MacPhail School of Music for a year. She married Dana Fleming in 1927 and they moved to Hills where Mr. Fleming was hired as Superintendent of Schools. He was superintendent in Hills from 1927 to 1948. They moved to Atwater in August 1952 where he was again Superintendent of Schools. Mr. Fleming died in August 1967 after an extended illness. She worked for 27 years during her husband’s illness and after his death. Her favorite job was being a senior companion in the Willmar area. It was a new program and she was able to give suggestions to improve the program. She later moved to Little Falls in the mid-90s to be closer to her daughter and her family. Survivors include two sons, James Fleming and Paul (Dolores) Fleming; one daughter, Karen (Jack); eight grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; one sister Maclynn Ericksen; and many friends.Mrs. Fleming was preceded in death by her parents, her husband and two brothers.
