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Dec. 25, 1948-Sept. 22, 2026
Powers Lake
Linda Van Berkom of Powers Lake, ND passed away on September 22, 2026 at Sanford Hospital in Bismarck, surrounded by her loved ones.
Linda was born in Powers Lake on December 25, 1948 to Arnold and Helen Jensen. She grew up on their farm outside of town and attended school at Powers Lake where she graduated in 1966. That same year, on September 4, she married Steve Van Berkom. They were married for forty-two years, until Steve's passing in 2008. From that marriage came five children, Scott, who was stillborn, followed by Lance, Stephanie, Sara and Lisa.
They made their home outside of Powers Lake while raising their family. Linda stayed home with her kids for years and worked part-time jobs while Steve farmed. While working at the Wagon Wheel Cafe, Linda discovered her passion and talent for cooking and hosting people and went on to lease the Wagon Wheel Cafe and later the B's Barn, serving up homecooked food, and creating a sense of community where regular customers became family and those friendships lasted many years. During that time, she and Steve hosted two foreign exchange students who became like daughters to them, Nelly Flores and Abril Monroy.
When her time in the restaurant business ended, Linda decided it was time for something more and at 46 years old she and her best friend Linda Rystedt and niece Brenda Rogness enrolled in nursing school at Fort Berthold Community College in New Town. She completed a two-year degree in nursing and received her Licensed Practical Nurse certificate. She worked at Mountrail Bethel Home in Stanley for many years, often working the night shift where she gained so many new friends in her co-workers and gave the best care to the residents. She finished her working career at Rockview Nursing Home in Parshall and retired from there, but she didn't slow down.
After her retirement Linda recruited friends and family and set sail to many destinations, traveling around the world and enjoying the sights and time spent with her friend Helene Beard and anyone who wanted to go with her on her next adventure. She loved traveling.
For a time, she took up reading and she read every book she could get her hands on and when she wasn't reading, she had her hands in the flower beds, working so tirelessly to make her yard beautiful. She often said "I want it to look like a park out here" and she made it that way. She planted a vegetable garden every year until the maintenance became too much for her and loved canning and making jelly. She needed a lot of jelly for all of the buns she baked and people she loved to feed when they came to visit.
In 2009, Linda went to Arizona to visit her friend, Alice Smith, and she fell in love with the desert. She bought a place in a community with Powers Lake friends and she lived life to the fullest, hiking Silly Mountain with her brother Elwood, who also took her on motorcycle rides. She took swimming lessons and learned to swim at 70 years old, proving it's never too late. She became a card shark at the clubhouse and loved going to her "Linda Breakfast" with all of her "Linda friends" from the park. She loved being in Arizona often mentioning how grateful she was for the time she got with Elwood and how she was able to reconnect with her best friend from childhood, Cyndy (Jessen) Wolf.
She sewed and quilted every day, no matter where she was and traveled to quilt shops all around the country making gifts for her grandkids and many others until her hands wouldn't allow it anymore.
In 2021, Linda was diagnosed with cancer and her life slowed down a bit, but she didn't let the diagnosis get her down. She gracefully and courageously fought her health troubles, never shedding a tear and always encouraging her family saying "This is just a bump in the road".
Linda will be missed so much by her loving family, which includes her son, Lance (Terry) Van Berkom of Burlington; daughter, Stephanie (John) Hegstad of Bismarck; daughter, Sara (Matthew) Evans of Stanley; and Lisa (Kelly) Thomas of Powers Lake. She is also survived by twelve grandchildren and five great grandchildren who include, Kelli (Adrian) Sosa, Laci (Micah) Cox, Luke Hegstad, Leanne (Tanner) Johnson, Ben (Sydney) Van Berkom, Jakob Van Berkom, Jack and Jett Evans, Bristol, Berkley, Briggs and Beau Thomas, and Great Grandchildren: Lylah, Aiden, Sophia, Jovie and Adler.
There will be a public visitation held at the Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Powers Lake, ND from 3:00-6:00 PM on Monday, September 28, 2026 with a Family Service to follow and begin at 6:00 PM.
Linda's Funeral Service will be held on Tuesday, September 29, 2026 at 11:00 AM at the Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Powers Lake, ND. Pastor Pauline Crowder will officiate. Linda will be laid to rest at the Saint James Cemetery in Powers Lake, ND.
The Funeral Service will be recorded and uploaded, you can view Linda's service directly on her obituary page on website www.springan stevenson.com.
Springan Stevenson Funeral Home of Stanley has been entrusted with arrangements and services. Friends may sign the on-line register and give their condolences at www.springan stevenson.com.
Published by The Minot Daily News, September 26, 2026.