May P Jesseph passed away on July 30, 2022 at Seasons Hospice in Rochester, Minnesota, after a series of health challenges. She is survived by her sister Ann in Snohomish, Washington, two sons Doug (Doreen) of Tampa, Florida and Steve (Jane) of Doylestown, Pennsylvania, and daughter Jennifer (Randy) of Pine Island, Minnesota, and grandchildren Joel and Laura. She is preceded in death by her husband Joseph R Jesseph, parents Albert B Pappenhagen and Elizabeth Pappenhagen along with sister Betty and brother Albert.
Born on December 7th, 1934 in Orofino, Idaho, May graduated from the local Orofino High School, and attended the University of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho, where she married Joseph R Jesseph in 1956. The family lived in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Laramie, Wyoming, and moved to Morris, Minnesota in 1967.
In 1971, May became the librarian at the circulation desk at the Rodney Briggs Library of the University Of Minnesota, Morris, a position she held until retiring in 1997. She also taught Children’s Literature to teachers in the Morris area which enabled them to get their masters degrees in teaching. In 1997, May moved to Rochester, Minnesota, and began a new career with part time jobs at Goddard Library at Rochester Technical College and at the Rochester Public Library in the children’s area where she did many night time story times and story times with children. She retired from the Goddard library in 2019 and from the Rochester Public Library in 2021.
May was active in the communities she lived in. During her time in Morris, she served on the County Planning Board for many years. In Rochester, she was an active volunteer through church and library outreach programs. She attended Peace United Church of Christ in Rochester.
All her life, May was passionate about children’s literature and folk tales. She loved telling all kinds of classic folk tales to groups of children in schools, and at the library. May also loved to sing folk songs of all kinds with children and with her family, a passion she enjoyed up to the very end.
A memorial service is planned for May Jesseph on April 22nd, 2023 at Peace United Church of Christ located at 1503 2nd Ave. NE, Rochester Minnesota 55906.
In lieu of flowers, please make donations in memory of May Jesseph to: Rochester Public Library Foundation 101 2nd St SE Rochester, Mn 55904.
https://www.rplmn.org/about-us/library-foundation/donate-to-library
Or send donations to the Rodney A. Briggs Library in Morris, Minnesota at 600 East 4th Street, Morris Mn, 56267
https://library.morris.umn.edu/about-library/giving-rodney-briggs-library
Memories and condolences of May may be shared at rochestercremationservicesmn.com
May blessed my children and I with her gift of story telling every week at Rochester Public Library. We looked forward Story Hour every week. When my children got too old I borrowed friends children so I could have that hour of magic every week with May.
It was 1999, My son was 3 years old and I took him son every Tuesday at 6:30 pm to the Rochester MN Library for a night story in pajamas. May made every story special, children(and parents too) were all paying attention and enjoyed the story time very much. Some people have a magic touch with children, and May definitely had it. I hope that you are now telling stories in heaven, May.