Vinland leader passes away

Duane Reynolds, associate director of Vinland Center, passed away suddenly May 3. He was 68 and lived in New Hope.

Reynolds worked in the chemical health field for more than 40 years, and held Minnesota’s first chemical health license. Reynolds worked at Vinland for 19 years, and was instrumental in developing and expanding its chemical health and mental health programs. He was heavily involved with its two supportive homes in New Hope. Reynolds was a mentor and friend to many people on Vinland’s staff.

Appointed to the Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health by Gov. Mark Dayton, Reynolds also served on the PreferredOne Board. He was involved for several years in the Minnesota State Horticultural Society.

Reynolds is survived by his wife, two daughters and a grandson. Services have been held.

 

Eilertsen helped start group homes

The Rev. Edwin J. Eilertsen, whose ministry spanned several Minnesota churches and included a focus on people in need, died May 15. He was 90 years old. The New York City native was called to the ministry while attending the University of Minnesota. After earning a master’s of divinity from Berkeley Divinity School at Yale University, he was ordained by the Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota in 1952.

He served several Minnesota churches, with his longest tenure at St. Martin’s by the Lake Episcopal Church in Minnetonka Beach. He was known for working to make churches welcome to all. One of his many accomplishments was to help start a network of group homes for people with developmental disabilities, to bring citizens out of institutions and into the community.

Eilertson is survived by his wife, three daughters and three grandchildren. Services have been held.

 

Price worked on accessibility

Cherie Lovelace Price, whose work on civil rights issues included a focus on disability, died May 14 in her sleep at home in Minneapolis. She was 83.

Price was from a prominent Twin Cities African-American family. She graduated from South High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in human services in 1979 at Metro State University. For more than a decade, Price worked at the Minneapolis Society for the Blind, where she helped people with disabilities navigate new technologies as they sought to live independently. She then spent 18 years at the former Control Data Company, where she worked with injured workers and workers with disabilities.

Price was active at Sabathani Community Center and St. James AME Church, her home congregation. Family members recalled that when her brother passed away, friends in wheelchairs couldn’t enter the church. Price led efforts to make the church accessible.

Price is survived by several family members. Services have been held.