Renée K. Durda

Renée K. Durda, age 81 of Apple Valley, passed away peacefully on March 5, 2025, surrounded by her family. Preceded in death by her parents, Donald & Renée Trucker. Renée is survived by her devoted husband of 60 years, Stan; daughter, Monique (Scott) Morton; brothers, Chuck (Sharon) Trucker and Victor Trucker; other relatives and friends.

Renée was born in Louisiana, but soon after her father returned from service in WWII, the family relocated to New Hope, Minnesota, where two brothers came along and joined the family. In her younger years, she enjoyed taking care of her two little brothers and getting involved at school. Renée was very intelligent and excelled at everything academic. Her high school years were spent at St. Margaret’s Academy and upon graduation, she attended the University of MN. There she met her future husband, Stan, and the two married in January 1965, welcoming their daughter, Monique, later that year.

Renée truly loved being a wife and mother. She was able to stay home and raise her family until 1983 when she answered her own calling to return to college and finish the degree she’d started so many years before. For the next 25 years, Renée went on to have a highly successfully career as an independent financial planner. Renée had hope that one day she and her daughter would work together in the ‘family’ business, but eventually the book of business was sold in 2009.

Her passions were many – she was an outstanding cook and baker. Whether it was her famous pepper steak or New York style cheesecake, everything was sure to be tasty and a big hit with company. Renée was a voracious reader – crime or detective series like Alex Cross, federal agent stories with Mitch Rapp, or historical drama like Shogun – didn’t matter, she loved them all. She actually read Tolstoy’s War and Peace cover to cover and enjoyed it! Renée was an ardent animal lover and had many furry companions over the years - dogs, cats, birds, and even a bunny rabbit at one point. But her favorite pastime was outdoors trapshooting with her husband and friends – the sport she took up with her husband in the mid 70’s, participating until her balance was no longer strong enough to hold a shotgun safely. As a trapshooter, Renée performed exceedingly well over the years; having thousands of laughs, winning many trophies, and making lifelong friends.

In the late 90’s, her husband stumbled upon another activity for them to enjoy together – motorcycling. Stan built his collection of Harley’s with the full support of Renée, his riding companion. They traveled all over the 5-state area – including a wonderful trip out to the Black Hills with their friends, the Haussner’s. When MS eventually limited Renée’s ability to get on a motorcycle – Stan overcame the challenge by getting a Can-Am Spyder [completely tricked out of course] so that Renée could still continue to be his ‘partner in crime.’

Renée was not only the beloved matriarch of her family – but she was a sister, an aunt, a confidant, the most loyal of friends, the chief officer of encouragement, and the best of listeners. She was an extremely sweet and kind woman who went out of her way to be generous to all, but especially to those in her circle. Neither Stan nor Monique could go to a trapshooting event without someone stopping them to ask, “Hey, how’s Renée doing?” She touched so many people throughout her life and was truly loved in return.

A Celebration of Life will be held for Renée from 4:00pm to 7:00pm on Friday May 16th, 2025, at Starkson Family - Anderson Chapel, 14850 Garrett Avenue, Apple Valley, Minnesota. Renée respected veterans and their service to our country, so in lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to those charities that provide support to our service men and women, like Tunnel to Towers or Wounded Warriors.