Imelda J. Allen
May 26, 1952 – January 24, 2026
Services
Schedule Details
A Memorial Service will be held at 11am on Monday, February 9, 2026, at Benson Funeral Home. A visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the funeral home. A luncheon will be held after the service at the funeral home.
Imelda Joan Allen, 73
St. Cloud, MN
May 26, 1952 – January 24, 2026
Imelda Allen passed away on January 24, 2026, in Foley, MN.
A Memorial Service will be held at 11am on Monday, February 9, 2026, at Benson Funeral Home. A visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the funeral home. A luncheon will be held after the service at the funeral home.
Imelda Joan Allen (Merdan) was born May 26, 1952, in Collegeville, MN and spent her childhood on the family farm. She enjoyed picking apples, strawberries, raspberries, and tending to her animals (especially a cat named Sylvester). Imelda went to a small country school near her home and eventually became a graduate of Cathedral High School. Imelda married Don Allen on September 8, 1973, before having and raising her two sons, Paul and Matthew.
Imelda loved working and serving the public, making a multitude of friends along the way. Imelda became known for her homemade greeting cards, which she gave to her family and friends regularly. She loved watching and feeding the gtbirds that would visit outside her windows at her home of 52 years. She pointed out that the Cardinal was her favorite of all. Imelda also tended her flower garden for many years and saw the true beauty in God’s creation.
Imelda’s Christian faith was also very important to her. She loved reading the Bible, taught Sunday School, attended various churches, and gave to multiple charities that shared the Gospel of Christ. She believed in visiting and ministering to the sick and elderly, volunteering at the St. Cloud Hospital and various nursing homes.
Imelda leaves a lasting legacy of love, compassion, tenderness, understanding, art, beauty, and family. She will be truly missed in our lives.
Imelda is survived by her husband, Donald; children, Paul (Kari) Allen, Matthew Allen; grandchildren, Andrew, and Alexis “Lexi” Allen; siblings Charles (Sandy) Merdan, Lillian Edelbrock, Elizabeth Lipinski, Marlene Thielman, and Marita (Donald) Schwinghammer, Brother in Laws; Larry Koltes and Ed Koska.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Andrew and Frances Merdan; siblings, Judith Koska, Leonard Merdan, Annella “Nell” Bechtold, Robert Merdan, and Carol Koltes; in-laws, Robert Edelbrock, George Lipinski Sr, Janet Merdan and Loren Thielman