Minnesota State Fair bench request honoring fallen friend made just in time

OAKDALE, Minn. — Through multiple cancer battles and 100 sessions of chemo, Kristine Slagle fought hard.

“She never gave up,” said friend Tina Payton.

But after a more than eight-year battle, Slagle lost her life.

When the news came out last week that the Minnesota State Fair would be discontinuing personalized benches, Payton and her wife, Michelle Moran, thought what better way to honor their “fair freak” of a friend.

“She loves the fair,” Moran said.

Slagle won multiple state fair sweepstakes awards for her needlework. Dozens of her ribbons piled up in Payton and Moran’s living room Sunday.

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“After she got diagnosed with cancer, she said, ‘You have to get me a bench. I want a bench after I’m gone. I want a bench,’” Moran said.

The couple raised $2,500, and then some, through an online fundraiser to purchase a commemorative bench.

“People loved her,” Moran said.

The bench was ordered Wednesday night.

“We just got this feeling like it was urgent,” Moran said.

They had no idea that just a day later, sales would stop. The order went through just in time.

“She did it. I think she orchestrated this whole thing,” Moran said.

“It would just make her happy to know she’s so loved. She made everyone feel special,” Payton said.

Now Slagle’s spirit will live on in a place she held close to her heart.

“If you go to the fair, find the yellow bench in the quadrant around creative activities and have a sit. Kristine would love to meet you,” Moran said.