Meredith G. Bleifuss, age 88, died on January 17, 2024, in Grand Rapids, Minnesota.

Meredith Goar was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri and attended Southwest High School. She earned her associate degree at Bennett College in Millbrook, New York. She attended the University of Kansas where she met Benjamin F. Norman, III while on a blind date in New Orleans, Louisiana. They were married and moved to Texas, where they began their family with the births of William and Carolyn. They moved to Sarasota, Florida, where they welcomed their son Daniel. In Florida, Meredith cultivated her family's love for tennis, philanthropic work, and the arts. After many summer visits to their beloved family cabin in Northern Minnesota, the family took the leap and moved to Grand Rapids where they opened The Village Bookstore in 1972.

In 1980, Meredith married Dr. Rodney Bleifuss of Grand Rapids, Minnesota. Together, they put down roots on Pokegama Lake, where the couple spent time sailing, playing golf, socializing with friends and family, traveling the world, and somewhere along the way retiring. Meredith completed her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at the University of Minnesota Duluth in 1991 and continued to share her love of painting and drawing with those around her.

Meredith was a devoted daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, aunt, and friend. She was the family archivist, an environmentalist passionate about preserving natural areas, a voracious reader, and an artist who enjoyed the words and works of local writers and creators. She loved the subtle beauty of Northern Minnesota, including the white pines and woods of Itasca County, the wildflowers of Wabana, the waters of Wasson Lake, the wonders of Singing Pines Lodge, the swamps of Wawina Township, and much to our surprise, the Minnesota winters.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Isabel and Clayton Goar; husband, Rodney Bleifuss; and nephew Jimmy Goar. She is survived by her siblings, James (Judy) Goar and Carolyn (Terry) Sullivan; children, William (Jennifer) Norman, Carolyn Storm Norman Riley, and Daniel (Marlene) Norman; granddaughters, Isabelle Norman and Elizabeth Norman; step granddaughters, Margaret Miller and Sarah Alice (Troy) Gay; extended family, Terry (Mark)  Bleifuss, Patti (Jim) Bleifuss, Todd Bleifuss, and Carmi Bleifuss; nieces, Susan (Mark) Massey, and Holly (Nick) Rowden; and nephews, Johnny (Torii) Goar, and Thomas (Emma) Goar.

The family would like to thank Kim and Jeff Bishop for their care and friendship of Meredith over the last few years, as well as the staff at the Grand Itasca Clinic and Hospital, St. Croix Hospice, and Majestic Pines Senior Living.

A celebration of life for Meredith will be held on February 17th, 2024, at 2:00 PM at the Hotel Rapids in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. A private ceremony will be held "on a sunny day in June" at Mount Moriah Cemetery South in Kansas City, Missouri.

In lieu of flowers, Meredith would love it if you took a walk at the Wabana Trails and Wildflower Sanctuary or at a natural area near your home.