Phyllis Markegard Obituary

Phyllis Mae (Hansen) Markegard, 92, of Redfield, SD, passed away on Thursday, July 17, 2025, at the Avera St Luke's Hospital in Aberdeen, SD.
Visitation will be held on Wednesday, July 23, 2025, from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. at Hyke Funeral Home in Redfield.
Funeral services will be held on Thursday, July 24, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. at Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Redfield with Pastor Joy Proper officiating. Lunch and a time of fellowship will immediately follow the funeral service in the fellowship hall of the church. Burial will follow the meal at Prairie View Cemetery in Orient, SD.
The funeral will be live-streamed through a link on the funeral home's website below Phyllis's obituary. Arrangements have been entrusted to Hyke Funeral Home (www.hykefuneralhome.com).
Phyllis Markegard was born on April 11, 1933, to Halbert R. and Leah Marie (Downing) Hansen in Orient, SD. Phyllis attended school in Orient, graduating from Orient High School in 1951. During her time in school, Phyllis excelled in basketball and softball. She was such a good first baseman that she was eventually asked to play for the boys' baseball team! Following graduation, Phyllis worked at the drugstore in Miller, SD. A trip to Gary, SD, resulted in a fateful meeting during a community dance, where she met her future husband, Dale Markegard. The couple were married on December 11, 1951.
The couple soon moved to North Carolina, where Dale was stationed while in the military. Following Dale's discharge from the service, the family returned to Orient, then Gary, and back to Orient, where Phyllis babysat for families while her family grew. Once the children were older, Phyllis began working for the school as a playground supervisor and media center supervisor. Phyllis loved working with the children and was frequently referred to as "grandma" by many of the students.
In 1986, Phyllis retired from the school, spending time reading, completing word searches, watching the Twins play baseball, and taking casino trips with Dale and her sister Lavilla. She was a member of the Ladies Aid at Orient Lutheran Church, as well as the Ladies group at Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Redfield. Phyllis enjoyed gardening strawberries, apples, and rhubarb, as well as making lefse. She will be remembered as very witty, independent, and caring. She loved her family fiercely and considered any of her children's friends to be part of the family.
Phyllis is survived by her children: Roger Markegard of Redfield, Bruce Markegard of Watertown, SD, Donna (Dennis Brinson) Brownell of Trent, SD, Janice (Howard) Rounds of Watertown, and her "other son," Brett Wika; 6 grandchildren; 19 great-grandchildren; 1 great-great-grandson; sister Karen (Claude) Bent; and several nieces, nephews, and cousins.
She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband Dale; siblings: Bob Hansen, Virgil Hansen, and Lavilla Levtzow; sister-in-law Millie Hansen; and brother-in-law Lyle Levtzow.