Carolyn Rudebusch, age 89, of Madison, passed away Thursday, October 15, 2026 at Peaceful Pines Senior Living in Madison.
Funeral services will be 11 AM on Thursday, October 22nd at Madison United Methodist Church with Pastor Davis Anderson officiating. Visitation will be 5-7 PM on Wednesday at Rustand-Weiland Funeral Chapel with prayer service at 7 PM. Visitation will continue on Thursday for one hour prior to the service. Burial will be in Greenwood Cemetery in Brookings. The funeral will be livestreamed on the Madison United Methodist Church Facebook page.
In lieu of flowers, please direct memorials to: United Methodist Church, 304 N. Egan Ave., Madison, SD 57042.
Carolyn Janet Halstead was born December 29, 1936 in Brookings, SD, the daughter of Leonard & Marie (Janssen) Halstead. She graduated from Elkton High School in 1955. She attended Nettleton College in Sioux Falls for two years following high school. On August 2, 1956, she married Edward Rudebusch and they lived in Brookings and she started working at SDSU. In 1966, the family moved to Wisconsin and eventually moved back to Madison in 1974 and has remained here ever since. Carolyn is a Past President of South Dakota Soil & Water Preservation. Carolyn began her career at East River Electric, where she worked for several years before joining Heartland Consumer Power District in 1977 as an office administrator. She dedicated 21 years to Heartland before retiring. Her connection to Heartland continued, however, as she later returned as a fill-in receptionist, where she enjoyed answering phones, greeting visitors, and welcoming familiar faces.
Some of Carolyn’s hobbies were playing bridge, flowers, lake-life and just driving around the area. She was a member of United Methodist Church since 1974.
She is survived by her 2 daughters-Diane Cross and Kathy (Scott) Spotanske both of Madison; six grandchildren-Jammie (Glen) denHoed, Adam (Heather) Spotanske, John (Kelsey) Spotanske, Elizabeth (Brian) Unzelman, Brian (Robin) Mette and Robert Mette; 18 great-grandchildren & 3 great-great-grandchildren.
Carolyn was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Edward (2002) and sister, Doris Groneveld.
