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Rae Marie Elizabeth Sylvester, 82, passed away peacefully Sunday, March 3, 2024, at Inter-Faith Care Center in Carlton with her children at her side. Rae was born Sept. 19, 1941, in Perham to Mike and Mayme Rebuck.
She graduated from Perham High School in 1959 and went on to attend Moorhead State College, graduating with a teaching degree in 1962. She accepted a teaching position in White Bear Lake. Shortly after, she met Dave Sylvester, and they were married in 1966. In 1968, Dave took a teaching position in Cloquet, and Rae got her own position as a kindergarten teacher in Esko. She left the position two years later to raise her children. In 1976, Rae went back to work as a substitute teacher with the Cloquet district, and with Cloquet's Time for Tots as well as the ECFE program. She founded the Little Pine Nursery School in Cloquet in 1987, and acted as its director until retiring in 2007.
She is survived by her son, Michael (Amy); daughter, Dayna (Dale) Bottila; grandchildren, Darien, Dalton, Tanner and Hunter; sisters, Anna Mae Vetter of New York Mills and Margaret McLaughlin of Paynesville; and many nieces and nephews.
The family thanks the staff at Inter-Faith Care Center and St. Croix Hospice for the compassion and care that they provided Rae during her last few months.
Visitation: 5-7 p.m. Friday, March 22 at Nelson Funeral Care in Cloquet, with a prayer service at 7 p.m. Visitation continues from 10 a.m. until the 11 a.m. memorial Mass of Christian Burial on Saturday, March 23 at Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Cloquet. Inurnment will be at New Calvary Cemetery in Cloquet. To sign an online registry, visit http://www.nelsonfuneralcare.net.
In lieu of flowers or memorials, the family asks that you consider making a donation to the Cloquet Educational Foundation.
Pine Knot News, March 22, 2024