Velma Enger
Jan. 15, 1929 – Dec. 10, 2019
Velma Enger, 90, of
Stanley, ND, passed away
Tuesday, December 10,
2019 at the Mountrail
Bethel Home in Stanley,
ND. Springan Stevenson
Funeral Home in Stanley
has been entrusted with
arrangements. Friends
may sign the on-line re-
gister and give their con-
dolences at
www.springanstevenson.c
om
Her funeral service will
be held at 11:00 am on
Wednesday, December 18,
2019 at Faith Lutheran
Church in Palermo, ND.
Pastor Carter Hill and Pas-
tor Sarah Sorenson will
co-officiate. Interment
will be in Rest Haven
Cemetery in Palermo, ND.
A family service, open to
the public, will be held
Tuesday, December 17,
2019 at 5:00 pm at the
Springan Stevenson Fun-
eral Home Chapel.
Friends may call at the
funeral home on Tuesday,
December 17, 2019 from
10:00 am to 5:00 pm and
one hour prior to services
at the church.
Velma was born on
January 15th, 1929, on the
family farm in rural North
Dakota to Albert and Esth-
er Western. She attended
school in James Hill
Township completing her
studies through through
the 8th grade where she
developed a lifetime love
of reading. Thereafter,
Velma went on to spend
the late 1940’s through
the mid-1950’s working
domestically for a number
of local families with du-
ties ranging from house-
keeping to childcare.
In 1954, Velma met
Donald Enger upon his re-
turn from the Korean War.
The two courted steadily
until they were united in
holy matrimony in 1956
at the parsonage in Paler-
mo. In 1957, Velma was
blessed with the first of 6
children.
In the 1970’s Velma be-
gan working for the Paler-
mo school, first as a
teacher’s assistant where
she found great satisfac-
tion in helping children
who were struggling
academically. Eventually,
Velma took on the respon-sibilities as school cook.
She served in this capa-
city until the 1989 closure
of the Palermo School.
Those who knew Velma
well would describe her
as incredibly honest, prac-
tical, and reliable. She
was a highly organized
person, with a talent for
maintaining records that
pertained to local and
family history, as well as,
cultural heritage. Velma
often spent her time util-
izing this knowledge to
write stories of times gone
by so as to pass along her
love and understanding of
the past.
Velma was a long time
member of Faith Lutheran
Church in Palermo, as
well as, The Faith Circle,
and Ladies Aid. Her hob-
bies included crocheting,
quilting, gardening, can-
ning and preserving, in
addition to bird watching,
and Scandinavian heri-
tage. Velma was a spiritu-al woman, who prioritized
family, friends, and faith.
Her life embodied the
values she held and de-
voted herself to passing
on to her family. Velma
was a devoted friend and
family member, that will
be greatly missed by her
friends, family, and com-
munity.
Velma was survived by
3 sons, Wayne of Palermo,
David (Cheryl) of Seattle,
WA, Greg (Ronda) of
Show Low, AZ; 1
daughter, Valerie of
Mukilteo, WA;
daughter-in-law Jana of
Stanley; 13 grandchildren:
Alacias, Anette, Skylar
(Anna), Alexander, Aman-
da (Sam), Heather (Nate),
Dylan, Sidney, Caitlyn,
McKayla, Sydney, Ni-
cholas, and Carson; 2
step-grandchildren Laryah
and Kinde; 3 great
grandchildren Aseeli, Ni-
kolai, and Natalie; 1
step-great grandchild,
Noah, and 2 brothers
Robert and Albert (Mary)
of Stanley.
Velma was proceeded
in death by her husband,
Don; her parents, Albert
and Esther Western; sons,
Brian and John; siblings,
Norman, Sigard, Evelyn,
and Walter; sister-in-law,
Kay; and brother-in-law
James.