Mamie Hass

Balfour

Mamie Arlene (Berndt) Hass, formerly Mamie Sitz, 94, from Balfour, ND, was peacefully called to heaven by her Lord and Savior on April 21, 2026 at the SMP St. Aloisius Long Term Care in Harvey, ND. Funeral Services will be held at 10:30 AM Saturday, May 2, 2026 at the St. Martin Lutheran Church in Anamoose, ND. Visitation will be from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM on Friday, May 1, 2026 at the St. Martin Lutheran Church. Burial will take place at the Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery in rural Drake, ND. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred. Donations may be sent to: Mamie Hass Memorial Fund 4330 9th Ave NE Drake, ND 58736. Memorial donations will be used for the St. Martin’s Lutheran Church Cemetery Fund and the St. Aloisius-SMP LTC Patio Flower Project, causes that reflect Mamie’s lifelong devotion to her church and love of flowers.

Mamie was born on May 22, 1931, in Webster, South Dakota, to Roselyn and Robert Berndt. At the age of ten, she moved with her family to a farm north of Anamoose, North Dakota. It was there that she learned the values of hard work, faith, and community that shaped her entire life. Mamie attended school in Anamoose and graduated with the Class of 1948. Until her passing, she was the sole surviving member of the Anamoose Class of ’48.

At the age of 18, after six months of college in Minot, Mamie began her teaching career. She taught grades one through eight in a one-room schoolhouse in McHenry County near the Sitz farm north of Drake. It was there that she met and married Ernest Sitz on May 29, 1951. Together they built a life on the family farm, which they owned and tended as a grain and dairy farm. They were blessed with five children: Ted, Connie, Sherry, Joel, and Mark. Mamie and Ernest were dedicated members of St. Martin’s Lutheran Church in Anamoose, where Mamie taught Sunday school and served as Superintendent of the Sunday School Program for several years.

After Ernest’s passing in 1986, Mamie remained deeply connected to the family farm and continued her love of teaching, later serving as a teacher’s assistant in the Drake Public School District. Mamie’s compassion for helping students learn was her greatest strength as an educator. Years later, Mamie found companionship again and married Harold Hass on September 20, 1997. She moved to the Hass farm in Balfour where she continued her passion for gardening, farm life, and the quiet beauty of the countryside until Harold’s passing in 2016. Mamie loved peaceful evenings on the porch, listening to wildlife and watching distant trains cross the countryside. One of her greatest joys was taking golf cart rides around the farm to reminisce and admire God’s artwork reflected in the beauty of rural North Dakota.

Mamie is survived by her younger sister, Mona (Ken) Dempsey of Alsip, IL; her five children: Ted (Ann) Sitz of Harvey, ND; Connie (Grady) Watson of Lexington, SC; Sherry (Mike) Boehmer of Devils Lake, ND; Joel (Nancy) Sitz of Georgetown, TX; and Mark Sitz of Drake, ND; ten grandchildren; fifteen great-grandchildren; two nieces, Nadley (Todd) Buehler of Oberon, ND and Laurie DeMarco (formerly Laurie Pranke) (Timothy) of Geneva, OH; and one nephew, Brian (Lisa) Dempsey of Orland Park, IL. Mamie was preceded in death by her first husband, Ernest Sitz; her second husband, Harold Hass; and her parents, Roselyn and Robert Berndt.

Mamie was devoted to her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. She leaves behind a family deeply grateful for her common-sense approach to life and the example she set. Mamie will be remembered for her unwavering commitment to God, family, and friends, her gentle kindness, and the grace with which she navigated life’s joys and hardships. Her home was a place of welcome, her door always open, and her presence the centerpiece of family gatherings. One of her favorite sayings was, “Well, what do we know today?” Well, Mom, we know you will always be loved, and we know you are now in God’s arms.

The family would like to express heartfelt thanks to the long-term care staff at St. Aloisius, and to Dr. Nyhus and Julie Keller, for the loving attention and compassionate care they provided our mother. It was clear in so many ways how much they cared for her, and we are deeply grateful for the comfort, dignity, and kindness they showed throughout her time there.

Arrangements are pending with the Bethke-Nelson Funeral Home of Drake, ND. Online condolences may be left at www.nelsonfuneralhomesnd.com.

Published by The Minot Daily News, April 23, 2026.