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Helga P. Anderson • 1915 - 2010 Helga Petreina Norgard was born June 18, 1915 on the family homestead near Hartland, ND, to Christ and Thora (Sanda) Norgard, and named after two grandmothers. She was the oldest of five. Her siblings were Conrad, Gladys, Grace and Selmer. She attended school in Hartland and graduated from Hartland High School. She attended Minot Business School, working for her room and board. Helga left school to help with the cooking during threshing season on her family farm as her mom passed away in 1936. Helga married Oscar H. Anderson on February 5, 1939 at Zion Lutheran Church in Minot. As her husband was a principal, teacher and coach for 15 years and farmed in the summer near Voltaire, the family lived in several towns in North Dakota including Berthold, Hartland, Voltaire, Foxholm and Fort Yates during the school season. After her husband left education, the family moved to a farm near Voltaire. She loved the farm with animals, birds, gardens, crops and lots of work. Her husband Oscar passed away June 20, 2000. She loved traveling and meeting old and new friends. Helga was known for being able to accomplish many things in a short period of time. As her hands were rarely idle, she enjoyed quilting, crocheting, knitting, canning, baking and gardening. She was a family matriarch who enjoyed researching and writing about her family genealogy, including tracing her roots back to the first King of Norway. Due to her health she was in group homes and entered the Souris Valley Care Center in Velva in December 2007. She was a member of the Hjerdal Lutheran Church in Voltaire and was active with the church’s ladies aid functions, including making quilts for those less fortunate in the world. She spoke fluent Norwegian. She made two trips to Norway with Oscar and two other trips with her children, one of which included a visit to Iceland. She especially enjoyed visiting with her family in BØ, Telemark. When traveling in the many parts of Norway the Norwegians always commented on her use of the language, “My you speak such fine Norwegian, how can this be, where did you learn?” She said, “I learned from my grandmother and mother when I was young.” Helga was generous in sharing her values and Norwegian culture with her children and grandchildren, and was a person who was very proud of her age. Those who shared in her life, son, Merlin C. Anderson, Joliet, Ill; daughter, Carol Sonja, Seattle, WA; grandson, Eric, Phoenix, AZ; granddaughter, Kimberly Ness, and great-grandson, Ethan Brent Ness, both of New Hope, MN; great-granddaughters, Lilyan Marie and Virginia Grace Anderson, Phoenix, AZ; sister, Grace Brietzke, Nora Springs, IA; brother-in-law, Art Anderson, Spokane, WA; several nieces and nephews. Helga was preceded in death by her husband, Oscar; her parents; brothers, Conrad and Selmer Norgard; sister, Gladys Jensen and her grandson, Brent Anderson. Funeral: Thursday, December 9, 2010 at 11:00 a.m. at Hjerdal Lutheran Church, Voltaire, ND. Visitation: Wednesday, from 2:00 to 7:00 p.m. at Thompson-Larson Funeral Home, Minot, ND. Burial: Thursday at 3:00 p.m. at Sunset Memorial Gardens, Minot, ND.
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Helga P. Anderson, 95, Voltaire, died Friday, December 3, 2010 at the Souris Valley Care Center in Velva.