Lair leaves lasting impression on Owatonna

“She was a once in a lifetime friend.”

Steve Grubish said it, but it could have come from anyone who knew Lori Lair.

“She always put others first,” Grubish said of his “work wife,” whom he had known for more than 25 years.

The two worked together at Wenger Corporation, then at Carroll Seating until the time she retired due to her cancer. According to Lair’s obituary, “she loved the shenanigans she and Steve would get into and the friendship they shared together in that office.”

She died at home on Sept. 7. She was 59, and is survived by her siblings, nephews, her former husband and stepchildren; grandchildren and legions of friends.

Lair was born and raised in Albert Lea, where she graduated from high school in 1983.

She married Gene Barwick in 1990, making Lair a stepmother. The couple moved to Owatonna and later divorced but remained good friends.

She also remained in Owatonna, where she immersed herself in the community.

Deb Buck, president of the Owatonna Hospital Auxiliary, met Lair in 2019.

“She was larger than life,” Buck said. “To know Lori was to love Lori.”

Their friendship started through their shared work on the Festival of Tables committee, an annual fundraiser for the Auxiliary Scholarship Program. It supports those who pursue an education in health care.

Lair served on the Festival of Tables committee for many years.

“She had wonderful ideas, and she was a key part of our ability to really expand that (event) and bring in a lot more money for health scholarships that we give out every year,” Buck said. “She was very dedicated to that, and really felt it was a wonderful cause.”

While Lair was an auxiliary member, “she was also very involved in the community, too, with giving back,” Buck said.

She was so involved that about a week and a half before Lair died, the Owatonna Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors presented her with its “Extra Mile Award,” given in recognition of her service to both the Chamber and the community.

“Lori’s positive energy has touched many – both in her professional work and, even more importantly, through the relationships she built with friends and loved ones,” said Brad Meier, president of the OACC.

“Her willingness to volunteer, support local non-profits, and give her time to community events has truly made Owatonna a better place to live,” he said.

Though the Chamber of Commerce is designed to represent businesses, Lair joined the Chamber board in 2024 as an individual and served until her death.

She was also a former president of the Eagles Club, former president and active member of the Owatonna Women's Auxiliary, Sertoma Club, Elks Club, and served as a volunteer to many fundraisers and community events.

“Her whole life was … giving back to the community and helping where she could with her skill sets. It’s a terrible loss,” Buck said. “She was a wonderful role model. She was just such good person.”

Grubish saw it firsthand.

“She was always organizing a gift basket for an auction, or making something to eat for someone,” he said, “and she had such a personal connection with her customers when she was at Wenger Corporation. She was very approachable and easy to talk to.”

That included talking about difficult topics, Grubish said.

“We could always bounce work ideas off of each other, but more importantly,” he said, “we could discuss our personal lives and give each other honest, sometimes tough to hear, feedback.

“I hope she felt I was there for her during some tough times, and she was definitely there when I lost several family members in a short time frame,” he continued. “We had many very honest and open conversations regarding all sorts of things.”

That fits Buck’s description, too.

“She was fun, but she could be serious,” Buck said of Lair. “She was fiercely loyal to family and friends. She was compassionate – there’s so many things to describe her.”

Like strength, her friends said.

Lair was diagnosed with breast cancer about eight years ago but was declared cancer free after treatment. About two years ago, she learned she had lung cancer.

“She remained strong through her treatments for cancer,” Buck said. “She handled that with such dignity and grace. She fought it … but even fighting terminal cancer, she would smile that wonderful smile and that laugh.”

It’s that “infectious laugh and sense of humor” that Lair will be remembered for, Grubish said, as well as being “a warm, caring person. She always had a quick wit and a ‘saying’ that fit the situation.”

Grubish said he’ll remember his friend as “a confident businesswoman and hard worker. She made me better at my job – and as a person.”

Her legacy will live on, Buck said, as people ask about ways to memorialize Lair through the hospital auxiliary.

Though nothing has been finalized, a plan is taking shape.

“When you give a gift to the hospital auxiliary in Lori’s memory, we would put all of that money toward the scholarship fund that she worked so hard on to grow,” Buck said.

“Her name will always still alive with that event, because Lori was such an integral part of it,” Buck said.

“I think she would really appreciate that.”