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Aelrid Samuel "Al"
Kontos • 1934 - 2007 Al was born June 27, 1934, in Bismarck, ND, the son of Sam and Adele (Volk) Kontos. He was reared and educated in Bismarck and Minot where the family moved in 1944. Al graduated from St. Leo's High School in 1952. He attended Seattle University and graduated from Minot State University. While in Minot he opened The Little Dutch Mill. The restaurant was adjacent to the Dutch Mill Night Club which his family owned and operated for many years. In the 1960's he moved to Phoenix, Arizona. He attended Arizona State University in Tempe where he earned a master's degree in business. He and Murrell Peterson Jr., a former Minoter and friend from high school days, opened a business in Phoenix they called The Little Red Hen. Al later sold his interest in the business and moved on. He subsequently became a Realtor and real estate broker, and his career evolved into restaurant management and real estate development while living in Denver and Boulder, Colorado, Newport Beach and Corona Del Mar, California, Idaho and Bismarck, ND. He also managed the Elks Club in Boulder, the Holiday Inn in Vail, CO, and ASK Realty in Bismarck. He later managed and owned the Best Value Inn hotel in Williston. Al married Susy B. (Murphy) Conley in 2000. In 2001 they moved to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Al loved life and crammed a lot of high living into it. He was close to all of his family, maintained close ties with lifelong friends, and together, they traveled the world. He was an aviation enthusiast and an avid pilot. He spent much of his time in the outdoors, camping, hunting and fishing, skiing and hiking in the mountains. He was a skilled trainer of Labrador Retrievers for hunting. He developed a keen appreciation for the arts, with a particular interest in western paintings and sculpture, jazz and symphonic music. He was a member of Ducks Unlimited, Pheasants Forever and the Elks Lodge. Survivors: Wife, Susy Kontos, Coeur d' Alene, ID; daughter, Kim (Dan) Horn, Rancho Mirage, CA; son, Mark (Carol) Kontos, Coeur D'Alene, ID; grandchildren, Derek and Kristina Grindle, Lauren and Danny Horn, Jordan and Karly Kontos; his first wife, Adair (Ronald) Marra, Indian Wells, CA; stepchildren, Chrissy (Bryon) Wirtz, Rochester, MN, and their son, Sean Wirtz, and Benjamin Conley, Bismarck; sisters, Nita Kontos-Roberts, Bismarck, and Barbara Kontos, Palm Desert, CA; niece, Barbara (Mark) Kohlman, Minot, and their children, Andrew and Addison Kohlman. He was preceded in death by his parents, Sam and Adele Kontos, and by a brother, John Kontos. A funeral service will be held at St. Leo's Catholic Church, Minot Burial: Rosehill Memorial Park, Minot, ND. Celebrant of the Liturgies: Father Chris B. Walter Readings: Kim Horn and Jim Volk Eulogists: Mark Kontos and Mick Pflugrath Music: Master John Kontos, CD Selections Active Bearers: Sid Loomis,Tom Peterson, Dan Horn, Peter Erenfeld, Fred Erenfeld, Alan Erickson
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Aelrid
Samuel "Al" Kontos, 72, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, formerly
of Bismarck, Williston and Minot, North Dakota, died Saturday,
May 5, 2007 in a Tucson, Arizona, medical center.