‘Doctor Tell Me’ was Woyke’s career highlight

Carl H. Woyke is remembered as a voice for medical care in Minnesota. Woyke died in February at the age of 95.5 years. Woyke was born in 1922 in Waseca and grew up there. Born with cerebral palsy, he developed a strong sense of humor to cope with his disability. For a time he was a co-owner of the family’s concrete business in Waseca.

Woyke later moved to Minneapolis, where he attended Augsburg College and worked in the school’s public relations area. That career led to a long career with the Minnesota Medical Association, where he work in public education and communications. The association is non-profit professional organization representing physicians, residents and medical students. It is dedicated to being the unified voice of physicians for advancing the practice of medicine, the profession and patient health.

Woyke’s favorite part of the job with MMA was presenting the radio program “Doctor Tell Me.”

He is survived by his wife Amy Marie Larson Woyke, goddaughter Pastor Sharon Amundson and nieces and nephews. Services were held in March.

 

Doll welcomed children into her home

Mary Lou Doll was a lifelong advocate for children with disabilities, providing foster and respite care for hundreds of children. Doll, 90, died in February. She was 90 and lived in Minneapolis.

Friends and family members remember Doll as someone who put her beliefs into action, whether she was demanding changes in state mental health policy or opening her home to children with disabilities.

Born Mary Lou Flagstad in 1927, she grew up in a family with strong ties to the Presbyterian faith. She studied social work and education at Macalester College in St. Paul and went on to teach second grade in Minneapolis Public Schools.

Doll met her husband Orval Doll in 1956 at a church group for tall people, called similarly statured “Tip Toppers.” They married and had one biological child. Their daughter Margaret was born with the rare disorder phenylketonuria or PKU. Symptoms can include delayed development, hyperactivity and seizures. Doll’s brother-in-law, Robert Guthrie, later developed the first early screening test for PKU, known as the Guthrie Test.

Her daughter’s illness inspired Doll. She and her husband adopted three sons. Between 1981 and 2005 the family hosted more than 300 children in their home. The family provided needed shelter for children and young people with a wide range of physical and cognitive disabilities.

She was an early member of what is now the Arc Minnesota, and was very politically engaged and involved well into her 80s. Her health declined in recent months.

Doll was preceded in death by her husband and survived by three sons, a daughter, a sister and many other family members and friends. Services were held in March.