Julia Beryl Toms

Funeral Service for Julia Beryl Toms, 94, of Hoyt Lakes, will be at 1 pm Tuesday, December 29, 2015 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Virginia, with Fr. Rick Swenson officiating. Visitation will be from 3-5 pm Monday at the Ziemer-Moeglein-Shatava Funeral Home in Aurora, and will continue one hour prior to the service at the church. Interment will be in the Hoyt Lakes Memorial Cemetery. Beryl died Saturday, December 19, 2015 at The Alton Assisted Living facility in St. Paul. She was born on May 20, 1921 to John and Anna (Odgers) Hester in Butte, Montana. She grew up in Butte, and earned a bachelor’s degree at the University of Montana at Missoula. Beryl completed further training at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, in order to become a registered dietician. At the University, she met Philip Toms of Coleraine. After graduation, he was stationed in the Marine Corps near San Diego. Beryl began work as a dietician at a hospital in the Los Angeles area. She and Philip were married on December 18, 1944 at the chapel of the hospital where she worked. After the War, they moved to the Range, and lived in Hibbing and Coleraine, before moving to Hoyt Lakes. Beryl was a member of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Hoyt Lakes, where she was active in music ministries and women’s organizations. She was also a longtime member of the ecumenical group providing weekly church services at the nursing home at the hospital in Aurora. After St. Stephen’s Church closed, Beryl attended St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Virginia. She and her husband enjoyed traveling and toured extensively in the United States and other countries. Beryl will be remembered as a woman of faith, who was a kind, thoughtful, and friendly person. Survivors include her daughter: Virginia Toms of St. Paul, and son: John (Sandra) Toms of Oak Park, MI; two grandsons: Philip and William Toms. She was preceded in death by her husband, Philip Toms; a brother, John Hester; and her parents.