Condolence to the Ryan Zorn family:

From Esther Murray Fleming (65): Flint, MI

I just wanted to send our deepest sympathy and condolences to the family of Myron Zorn. I was so sorry to hear about Ryan. I did not know him but I know his dad from high school. May God be with you at a time like this.

Later

Esther Murray (Fleming)

Sharon Zorn, I do not have a good email address for Myron & JoAnn. Can you relay this messages and the others previously posted to them?

Thanks, Gary

Dunseith Alumni Reunion:

Dorothy Hiatt Swanson (46): Moorehead, MN.

Folks, I received a phone call last night from Dorothy Hiatt Swanson. We had a wonderful visit. We both grew up in the Ackworth community, so we had lots of things to talk about. She was enquiring about the date of the Alumni Reunion. She had seen our publication in the Bottineau paper. For some reason the Date got dropped when it was published in their paper. When I asked her if she’d like for me to add her to our list of those attending, she said “YES”. Dorothy does not have email. Dorothy is a sister to Eleanor Fauske, Charlotte Lang, Florence Dahl, Howard Hiatt and that family. Gary

Dunseith Alumni Reunion – 5/22/09 – Bingo Barn:

From Verena Gillis: Dunseith, ND.

Gary,
Please add Gaillord and his wife Rene Peltier to the reunion list. Also
Shannon (Gillis) LaVallie and her husband Stacy
LaVallie-Devils Lake, ND
Unsure as to where Gaillord is right now but will find out.

Also, thank you to Vickie Metcalfe for the wonderful pumpkin donuts, they
were very delicious!

We are going to need to do a survey on food, I am currently getting
estimates on Ham, Roast Beef and Turkey, also twice baked potatoes. If we
can order these items along with some baked beans, vegetables & dinner
rolls, we can charge so much per plate to pay for it, what do you think?
I will have an idea on what the cost would be by next week. This would
relieve people from having to bring, right?

Folks, what do you think about Verena’s idea for food? This sounds like a pretty good idea to me. It puts a lot of the work load on her though, but it will for sure keep the costs down which is one of their main objects.

Reply from Tom Hagen (51): Mesa, AZ & Williston, ND

Hi, Gary Just a quick correction as my mother, Agnes maiden name was
Melhus which most people spelled Melhouse. Her father Peter Melhus came
from Indiroy, Norway , when he was 5 and they landed in Minn. where
he met our grandmother Helen Halvorson, (not related to Henry ) but
her sister was married to Hans Satrang so we are related to them. Clyde
went to school with us at Loon Lake #2 and also Irene Lindstrom, at
first Aanon Torgerson ‘s lived north of the school and Lorraine went to
school with us. Then Don and Marv Hermanson who moved there.

We love E-mail letters, Love Tom and Dot

Tom, These are some of my relatives you mentioned. I did not realize they lived in your neighborhood. Mrs. Anton Torgerson was is sister to my dad’s adopted mother and also to Mrs. Nick Lund. Of the Torgerson’s I knew Mildred, Knute and Della very well. Millie married Elmer Lindstrom. When they lived in the hills, I always thought they lived farther North. That was before my day. Irene was the oldest of their 5 girls. I did not realize that she attended school in the hills. Elaine was several years younger followed by Shirley, Dianne & Deb. In my day, Elmer & Millie lived a mile or so west and south of where #43 comes to and end on the west end of the hills. Is #14 the intersection there? At the moment I have forgotten. Irene Lindstrom Tonneson has done extensive history on her mothers side. Irene lives on a farm NE of Souris. You mention a Hermanson. I’m not sure who Don & Marv were, but Della Torgerson was married to a Hermanson. He died before I can remember back to. Della lived in Bottineau. Knute lived in Alvarado, MN. He visited the Bottineau area often. Gary

Posted by Vickie Metcalfe (70: Bottineau, ND.

Ryan Zorn was the son of Myron (65) and JoAnn (Soland) Zorn.

Fallen soldier honored as person who worked to make a difference

JOSHUA WOLFSON Casper Star-Tribune | Posted: Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Brig. Gen. Tim Cole embraces JoAnn Zorn after presenting her with a Bronze Star for her son, Staff Sgt. Ryan Zorn, during his funeral Tuesday morning at Wright Baptist Church in Wright. (Courtesy photo)

WRIGHT — Staff Sgt. Ryan Zorn gave a simple answer when his father once asked him to consider leaving the military.

“Dad, I’m making a difference,” he said.

Zorn, who died last week in Iraq, was remembered Tuesday at his funeral as a model soldier who gave his life for a cause he passionately believed in.

“He had an undying loyalty to his country, to his family and to his God,” said classmate Jeri Gibson, one of more than 300 people who packed Wright Baptist Church for the service.

Zorn, 35, died Nov. 16 when his armored vehicle overturned near the city of Tal Afar in northwestern Iraq. The Wright resident had been helping Iraqis develop communications and intelligence operations as part of the 311th Military Intelligence Unit of the 101st Airborne Division.

In his 16 years in the U.S. Army, Zorn served tours in Saudi Arabia, Korea, Germany and Iraq. He was a battle-hardened officer who embodied Army values, said Brig. Gen. Tom Cole, who addressed mourners during the 75-minute service.

“Ryan was not a complainer,” Cole said, standing near Zorn’s flag-draped casket. “He would just say a simple ‘Roger.’ That was his hallmark.”

Cole presented Zorn’s mother, JoAnn, with a Bronze Star earned by her son.

“It’s not just our soldiers who sacrifice so much for our freedoms,” the general told mourners. “Families give so much.”

While stationed in Iraq, Zorn made sure the soldiers under his command received care packages. A deeply religious man, when back in Wyoming he’d ask his pastor to pray for his men’s safety.

“He was proud of what he did, and he died doing what he believed in,” said his father, Myron.

Zorn never married, explaining that he didn’t want to find a wife only to be sent back to war. But he had a close relationship with his parents and other family members, said the Rev. Clay Alexander, who officiated the service.

Alexander read from two letters written by Zorn’s nieces. In one, Paige Zorn called her uncle a hero. “He’s a little chubby and had short, spiky hair,” she wrote. “He is really cool.”

Mourners — including Gov. Dave Freudenthal and Sen. Mike Enzi — watched a video that showed Zorn grow from a skinny, blond boy into a burly soldier, posing with other troops in front of a mural of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.

The video also included footage of the scene in Gillette on Sunday, when thousands of people lined the streets to watch a hearse take Zorn’s casket from the airport to a funeral home. Dusty McClintock attended that procession and made the 50-minute drive to Wright for the funeral.

“We just wanted to come out and show our support,” said McClintock, who traveled with a group of about 10 motorcyclists.

Zorn was born in North Dakota but moved shortly after his birth to Upton, in northeastern Wyoming. His schoolmates described him as a big-hearted person with a constant smile.

He didn’t have a single enemy, said Hidie Bland, who traveled to the funeral from Sheridan.

“Not one,” she said. “I don’t think I ever saw him raise his voice.”

Friends said Zorn was soft-spoken but had a hearty laugh. He enjoyed athletics and possessed an encyclopedic knowledge of sports that some claimed rivaled the ESPN staff’s.

Upton High School Principal Gary Glodt recalled Zorn as a quiet, family-oriented student who enjoyed helping others.

“He had a distinct laugh,” Glodt said. “Everybody knew it was Ryan when they heard it.”

Even after Zorn joined the military, Glodt maintained contact with his former student. The educator remembered the pride Zorn had for the military’s mission in Iraq.

“He kept telling all of us that we were over there for a reason and helping out the Iraqi people,” Glodt said. “He was proud to be part of it.”

Contact Joshua Wolfson at josh.wolfson@trib.com or 307-266-0582.

Message/Pictures from Sharron Gottbreht Shen (59): Everett, WA.

The only Thanksgiving Day that stands out in memory must have been about 1949. It was very cold, lots of snow and Dad’s car would not start. He arranged transport via Dunseith taxi service; Mr Lilliby no doubt. I believe Grandma Evelyn was back from Seattle and working for Rosie McCoy at the Crystal Cafe and served up a fine meal in a small separate dining room. Mom and Dad had light duty on very few Thanksgiving Days; both would give the turkey their expert attension. Mogen David was for toasting, but I remember Dale splashing some on the turkey, Thanksgiving 1954 in our new home at The Corner.

Main Street Dunseith looked much the same as in 1949 as in the picture attached plus snow over a paved roadway. Of my old photo collection, those from Evelyn Gaudette Gottbreht are the only ones dated! And always in her beautiful script. Arla Gottbreht and Mary Evans [daughter of Celia Gottbreht and Ole Evans] were 6 going on 7 years old. Is anyone surprised to see the barber poles in the Fassett and Gottbreht Hardware window? It was 1932 that Main Street was paved in preparation for the crowds that would arrive to attend the dedication of the Peace Gardens. It must have been Floyd Richard or Oville Grenier who told me that Gr Grand Wm Gottbreht would sit out front of the Hardware Store and converse with the visiting locals in his last years [1859-1945]. In 1927, all of the children of Wm and Mary Ann Gottbreht retuned to the family home to celebrate Thanksgiving. Only Joe Gottbreht traveled the great distance from Superior, WI where he and Murtle Marie Duffy lived after his harbor/port service in WWI. Their mother was in poor health and passed the following February.

Corrections welcome. Thank you Gary, Sharron

Standing: Frederick, John, George, Joseph, James [Teddy], Wm Jr
Seated: Anna Borland, mother Mary Ann Kelly, father William, Cecelia Evans

Arla Gottbreht and Mary Evans [daughter of Celia Gottbreht and Ole Evans]

Thanksgiving:

From Vickie Metcalfe (70: Bottineau, ND.

Gary, One month from today will be Christmas. My principal sent me this fwd. It has some things to reflect on for THANKSGIVNG. May you and Bernadette have a HAPPY one. Vickie

Folks, today is Thanksgiving. We are a little ahead of you guys in the states. As I previously mention, we are going to the Marriott Hotel, this evening, for a genuine Thanksgiving dinner buffet with turkey and the whole works.

I want to share this Thanksgiving Trivia from Vickie with all of you on this Thanksgiving day.

I wish you all the best on this Thanksgiving day. Gary

=====================================

How Erma Bombeck viewed Thanksgiving Day…
“Thanksgiving dinners take eighteen hours to prepare. They are
consumed in twelve minutes. Half-times take twelve minutes.
This is not coincidence.”

How Rita Rudner viewed Thanksgiving Day…
“My mother is such a lousy cook that Thanksgiving at her house
is a time of sorrow.”

How Mark Twain viewed Thanksgiving Day…
“Thanksgiving Day, a function which originated in New England two
or three centuries ago when those people recognized that they really
had something to be thankful for–annually, not oftener–if they had
succeeded in exterminating their neighbors, the Indians, during the
previous twelve months instead of getting exterminated by their
neighbors, the Indians. Thanksgiving Day became a habit, for the
reason that in the course of time, as the years drifted on, it was
perceived that the exterminating had ceased to be mutual and was
all on the white man’s side, consequently on the Lord’s side; hence
it was proper to thank the Lord for it and extend the usual annual
compliments.”

How P. J. O’Rourke viewed Thanksgiving Day…
“Thanksgiving is so called because we are all so thankful that it
only comes once a year.”

=====================================

\\ \\\ | /// //
\\ \\ | /////
\\\\~ ~////
( @ @ )
—-OOo-(_)-oOOo——–

Turkey growth and development…

A lady was picking through the frozen turkeys at the grocery store,
but couldn’t find one big enough for her family. She asked the stock
boy, “Do these turkeys get any bigger?”

The stock boy answered, “No ma’am, they’re dead.”

—–oooO————
( ) ) /
\ ( (_/
\_)

Be thankful…

Be thankful that you don’t already have everything you desire…
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?

Be thankful when you don’t know something…
for it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times…
During those times you grow.

Be thankful for your limitations,
…because they give you opportunities for improvement.

Be thankful for each new challenge…
because it will build your strength and character.

Be thankful for your mistakes…
They will teach you valuable lessons.

Be thankful when you’re tired and weary,
…because it means you’ve made a difference.

It’s easy to be thankful for the good things.
A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks.
Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.

Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,

…and they can become your blessings.