Esther K. Gunderson, 100, formerly of Rapid City, died Sunday, Dec. 25, 2011, at her home in Overland Park. She was born June 20, 1911, at Lake Tystad, South Dakota to Clara and Wilhelm Christensen. She was preceded in death by her husband, Merle, her son ,Wallace (Wally), five siblings, Carl, Einer, Al, Emma (Beachler) and Geneva (Dickinson), two granddaughters, Susan and Jean, and one great-grandson, Andrew. Survivors include two children, nine grandchildren, fifteen great grandchildren and two great-great grandchildren. Esther was raised on a farm near Lake Preston. She graduated with honors from Lake Preston High School in 1929, where she starred on its championship girls basketball team. On December 15, 1930, she married Merle Gunderson. They had three children, Wallace (Wally) Gunderson (Dee), Wynn Gunderson (Lorraine) and Margaret Bonicelli (Derito). Merle and Esther resided on a farm near Lake Preston until 1936 when they relocated to Huron. Esther was employed by Armour and Co. and later became a seamstress at Eilers Furriers. Merle and Esther farmed from 1943 until 1952 near De Smet. They moved to Brookings thereafter as Merle accepted the position of Supervisor of the SDSU Horticulture Dept. greenhouses. They moved to Rapid City in 1956 when Merle was appointed Superintendent of Parks. During this time, Merle pursued his dream of creating a childrens fairyland park through the construction of Storybook Island with the support of the Rapid City Rotary Club. Many planning meetings were held in Esthers kitchen where she not only provided coffee and cookies for the attendees but good ideas as well. The Gundersons owned and operated several businesses in the Rapid City area including Gundersons Garden Center, Black Hills Nursery and Evergreen Valley Retirement Community. Esther made a significant contribution to each with her organizational and business skills. Esther was a member of Beta Sigma Phi, and was named its Sweetheart and awarded the Order of the Rose by her sorority sisters. She was also a member of Zonta. During their golden years, Merle and Esther spent winters in Mesa, Arizona. They eventually discontinued being snowbirds and lived fulltime at Westhills Village. After Merles death, Esther spent winters with her daughter in Overland Park, Kansas. In 2009, she made this her permanent residence where she made many friends and where she was affectionately dubbed the Queen and loved by all. Esther looked and had the energy of a much younger person. She loved to entertain her many (mostly younger) friends, bake Danish pastries, raise flowers, hunt pheasants (she once shot two in flight with one shot) and play bridge. She was famous for her lemon meringue and fresh peach pies. In later years, she became an avid fan of the well-known Irish tenor, Daniel ODonnell. She was honored to hear him perform twice in Branson, MO, where he recognized her personally for her 95th and 100th birthdays. Her favorite time of the year was Christmas Eve and, ironically, she was surrounded by family for one last Christmas Eve celebration and then joined the Lord on Christmas morning. Services will be at 1:00 pm, January 7, 2012 at First United Methodist Church with Rev. Doug Diehl officiating. Interment will take place at Mountain View Cemetery in Rapid City. A memorial has been established to Storybook Island.