Elsie Marie Krueger

Elsie Marie Krueger was born September 27, 1922 in Drake, N.D., the eldest of three daughters to Mike and Woldina (Mattheis) Krueger. She spent her early days on the family farm south of Voltaire. When the Depression struck, her dad went to work for the Soo Line for 11 cents per hour, six days per week, working outside year-round. The family moved from company house to company house along the tracks while Mike worked on the railroad. Elsie graduated from Voltaire High School in 1939.

In 1940, Mike was promoted to foreman with an accompanying raise in salary to 13 cents per hour. The family was then able to settle down in one place, and purchased a home in Minot, in which they lived until it was seized through the powers of eminent domain to accommodate the widening of the Burdick Expressway viaduct.

Elsie married John Scott in July of 1941. They remained in Minot where John worked odd jobs until he enlisted in the US Army in 1942. During his deployment, Elsie engaged in nursing training at Minot’s Trinity Hospital Nursing Home. She began a long career in the operating room at St. Joseph’s Hospital shortly thereafter.

. Elsie was a life time member in the VFW Auxiliary. They built their home in south Minot, in which they resided until their death, and in which they raised their six children, and worked to develop their property at Lake Metigoshe, at which they enjoyed many years.

John and Elsie spent their last winters in Arizona with son Malcolm. John passed in 1999, and Elsie continued to commute between North Dakota and Arizona up until her death. Elsie enjoyed her many winter trips to Hawaii, and continued to attend her sons’ powerlifting meets throughout the Southwest, and skydiving adventures at various venues throughout the last 25 years of her life. She was a participating member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Minot, and Risen Savior Lutheran Church in Chandler, Ariz.

She had a stroke on her 100th birthday in Minot that took the use of her legs. She was discharged from the hospital directly to nursing care in Velva, then in Chandler, Ariz., where she spent her last days with Malcolm visiting every morning and afternoon. She passed into God’s arms eternal the morning of March 2, 2023. She leaves behind daughters Karen Puklich of Chaska, Minn., Nancy Christianson of Eau Claire, WI, Timothy Scott of Minot, and Malcolm Scott of Chandler, Ariz., and many grandchildren and great grandchildren. Those who passed before her include her parents, husband John Scott, daughter Linda Baldridge, son Michael Scott, and granddaughter Dena Baldridge. Funeral arrangements are pending with Thompson-Larson. A funeral will be held at St. Paul’s Lutheran in Minot, on Thursday, March 16.

Published by The Minot Daily News, March 10, 2023.