Rita Marie Bestul

Rita Marie (Krutza) Bestul, 91, of Goodview died on July 11, 2025. Rita was born September 25, 1933, in Lanark Township, Wisconsin to Albert and Catherine (Riley) Krutza.

She graduated from Amherst High School in 1951. Two days after her 19th birthday, on September 27, 1952, she married her high school sweetheart, Allan Bestul, while Allan was on a four-day leave from military basic training. While he served honorably in the Korean conflict, Rita remained on her family’s farm in Amherst, Wisconsin. She delivered their first son in the fall of 1953, and a second son a year later. In 1957, Allan was offered a job in Winona, Minnesota, and with their two boys, they relocated having never visited the city. They settled into their new community and welcomed three more sons.

She was a meticulous homemaker who devoted her hands and her heart to the well-being of her family. She took pride in creating a warm and nurturing home and led it with grace, humor, and an unwavering sense of purpose. She left everything better than she found it. While all five boys were busy with school and sports, she applied this same tenacity to part-time book keeping at JCPenney, always balancing the ledger to the penny.

She and Allan spent their golden years traveling to their grandchildren and great-grandchildren’s sporting and extracurricular events, biking scenic trails in southern Minnesota, attending the annual UW-Madison Badger Marching Band concert, camping with friends and family, and refinishing antique furniture together.

She was an accomplished baker and her kitchen and freezer were consistently stocked with an abundance of quickbreads, cakes, bars, and her specialty: molasses cookies. There was always a seat at her table, but only grandchildren were allowed around it to bake and frost Christmas cookies—a family tradition that spanned 30 years and still continues today. She loved hosting holiday celebrations and family dinners, making meals for over 30 people look effortless. No matter how her family has tried, her recipes can never be replicated because her secret ingredient was her love.

She enjoyed blackberry ice cream, crossword puzzles, gardening, polka music, and sewing/crocheting. Her infectious laugh and generous hugs could soften the hardest of days.

She cheered for Wisconsin football and basketball, Minnesota baseball, and was a lifetime supporter of Winona sporting clubs. She and Allan were longtime members of St. Mary’s Parish in Winona where she was a regular at quilting groups.

She was generous, kind, and dedicated her life to the family she and Allan created. In September of 2022, they celebrated 70 years of marriage.

Her family was the center of her heart and the purpose of her life. Her legacy lives on in her five sons, Mark (Sandi), Bob (Sue), Scott (Lorie), Tim (Janice), and Todd (Adrienne); ten grandchildren, Katie (Eric) Lakanen, Amy (Jason) Emiliusen, Brienne (Aaron) Van Heuklon, David (Sarah) Bestul, Kelly Bestul, Riley (Steve) Kosak, Michael (Laura) Bestul, Claire (Ryan) LaCanne, Anna Bestul, and Blaine (Samantha) Bestul; 15 great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her parents, Albert and Catherine; brothers, Llyod, Gaylord, and Gregory; and her husband, Allan.

To know her was to love her. She passed surrounded by family.

A visitation will be held at St. Mary’s Church in Winona on Tuesday, August 19th at 9:30am followed by a mass service at 11:00am. A small luncheon will immediately follow at 12:00pm. She’ll be laid to rest with Allan in a private interment at Central Wisconsin Veterans’ Memorial Cemetery in King, Wisconsin at a date in the future.

Donations may be kindly directed to:

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, The Alzheimer's Association, or a charity of choice.

Hoff Celebration of Life Center is assisting the family.