Mildred Katherine Foreman Wren, beloved wife, mother, and sister, died peacefully at her Glendale home Wednesday, November 28, her children by her side. She was 91.

Mildred was born in 1921 in Columbus, North Dakota to Mathias Foreman and Susanna Bertrang. She graduated from Brooten High School in 1939 and went on to earn a Bachelors of Science and Nursing at the University of North Dakota.

By 1945 she was employed at St. Joseph's Veterans Hospital in Minot, when Milly took charge of admitting a soldier named Griffith "Bill" Wren. He was instantly smitten with the lovely Mildred and told her "You're the girl I'm going to marry."

Startled, Milly handed him off to one of her co-workers, but Bill relentlessly pursued her until (as he always told it) "she caught me" and they were married the day after New Year's in 1946 in Minneapolis.

Doctors told Mildred she had a weak heart and probably wouldn't live beyond her twenties, yet she went on to have eleven children, all of whom were born in Minneapolis. In 1964 the family moved to Glendale, California, where Mildred took a job at Glendale Community Hospital (now Adventist), where she worked for over 16 years.

Often after working a full shift she would visit former patients to help them with dressing changes, shop for groceries, or take them to get their hair done, all on her own time. She continued her extensive community service after she retired as a Charge Nurse on the surgical floor in 1980.

Mildred was a lifelong Catholic; she was an active member at Holy Redeemer of Montrose as well as the Legion of Mary. Her faith was the foundation of her life and held her up through many crises.

Mildred loved babies, Boston Terriers, and beautiful outfits. She enjoyed crosswords, the piano, Bridge, and Scrabble, and no grandchild could ever escape her patented lipstick kiss-prints.

Mildred was preceded in death by her parents, her sister Josephine and brothers Vincent and Mattie, her husband Griffith "Bill" Wren, her daughter Anne Marie, and her sons Thomas Peter and Michael Stephen.

She is survived by her sister Juanita Jones; children Susanne Riechel, Mary Ridlen, Katherine Wren, Kevin Wren, Theresa Luri (husband Ron), Colleen Wren-Fontana, Christopher Wren (wife Bonnie), Monica Salembier (husband Alex); daughter-in-law Kit Wren; and 11 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren.

The funeral mass will be held Monday, December 3 at 10am at Holy Redeemer Catholic Church in Montrose.