Tanya M. Shorter

Obituary

Tanya Marie Shorter was born October 21, 1949, in Bismark, North Dakota, to Henry “Hank” Reyerson and Teresa Kulla Reyerson. She was raised in North Mankato, Minnesota, with her older brothers, Maury and Hardy, and her younger siblings, Jimmy and Rosie (Stotts). Tanya attended Holy Rosary Elementary and then Loyola High School. Upon graduation, she continued her Catholic education at the College of St Benedicts, where she graduated with her BA in art and minor in French.

During an art therapy internship at Fergus Falls State Hospital, Tanya met her future husband, Bruce Shorter, although she initially thought he was a patient. They married on November 21, 1970, in St Joseph, Minnesota. Tanya and Bruce were blessed with two children: Jennifer Marie (11/11/71) and Joshua David (8/24/75). The family lived in Rice, Minnesota, where Tanya created beautiful Christmas banners for the local church. During this time, Tanya took a night job cleaning at DeZuriks Machining where she illustrated a newsletter and created popular comics for the workers.

In 1981, the family moved to St Cloud, Minnesota. Shortly after, she opened an in-home family daycare which she ran for nearly three decades. Tanya always believed that a society that made decisions based on what's best for children would make a society better for everyone. She was active in a daycare advisory council and campaigned for union representation for providers. Tanya painted faces for her daycare children and even did so at local festivals where she loved children’s happy faces when they saw her beautiful art. She had a way of making each child feel listened to and seen. Tanya also continued her art through making batiks, entering the State of Minnesota’s Duck Stamp Competition, making crafts and ceramics with her best friend, Barb, and paintings for several of her daycare families. She learned to write icons with the Sisters of St Scholastica in Duluth and continued to use her gift to decorate for the Newman Center in St Cloud. Tanya retired from daycare and moved to Hutchison, Minnesota, to grandma nanny for her son Josh’s children, Rob and Andy. She also found a wonderful, welcoming Lutheran church to join and share her many gifts with.

Tanya passed away on Saturday, December 9, 2023, at Harmony River Living Center in Hutchinson, at the age of 74.

Blessed be her memory.

Tanya is survived by her
Oldest Brother, Maurice Reyerson (Anna);
Younger Sister, Rosemarie Stotts;
Youngest Brother, Jimmy Reyerson;
Daughter, Jennifer Shorter;
Son, Joshua (Sara) Shorter;
Grandchildren: Jacob, Max, Sofia, Elias, Andy, Robert, and Levi;
and finally, 2 ½ Great-grandchildren: Matteo, Jenson, and Baby Wirz who is due in August.

Tanya was greeted in heaven by both Parents; her Older Brother, Hardy; her Great-granddaughter, Peyton; and her Love, Chuck.