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Laurie Jean Sparks, 62, of Wrenshall passed away Monday, Nov. 22, 2021. She was born Dec. 22, 1958 in Duluth to Gerald and Barbara Cook. She was raised on Lawrence Road in Cloquet and attended Cloquet Schools, graduating in 1977. Laurie married William Sparks on Sept. 19, 1998 in Carlton.

Laurie received her associate’s degree from Lake Superior College in Duluth. She worked as a commercial loan processor at Members Cooperative Credit Union in both Cloquet and Duluth and at Park State Bank in Duluth. Prior to working at those companies, she worked in the financial department at The College of St. Scholastica.

She was a member of Bethesda Evangelical Lutheran Church in Carlton. She enjoyed music, including the piano, and she enjoyed scrapbooking.

Laurie was preceded in death by her parents.

She is survived by her husband, William; children, Christal (Matt) Stowell, Jason (Cora) Sparks, Jennifer (Jason) Goodwin, and Jeremy (Leah) Sparks; grandchildren, Raven, Jason (JT), Samuel, Jillian, Sebastian, Madison, Kaitlynn, Alec, Othin, Andrew, Quinton and Autumn; great-granddaughter, Brynlee; sister, Stephanie Cook; brothers, Scott Cook, Harvey “Butch” (Kay) Cook, Tom (Mary) Cook, and Pat Cook; and many nieces, nephews and friends.

Visitation: 1 p.m. until the 2 p.m. memorial service Friday, Dec. 3 in Atkins Northland Funeral Home, 801 14th St., Cloquet. Masks are required. A luncheon will follow the service in the fireside room of the funeral home. To sign the guestbook and leave an online tribute, see http://www.atkinsnorthlandfuneralhome.com.