Marian Jensen

Marian E. Jensen, age 89, of Sharon, ND passed away on Thursday, July 7, 2011, at Hatton Prairie Village, Hatton, ND. Funeral service will be on Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 2 PM at Trinity Lutheran Church, Sharon, ND. Visitation will be on Wednesday, from 5-7 PM will a prayer service at 7 PM at Hatton Prairie Village in Hatton and one hour prior to service at the church on Thursday.
Marian Evelyn Jensen was born to Henry and Evelyn Herigstad on March 27, 1922. She was raised with her beloved sister Lenore and brother Bert on a farm near Cooperstown, North Dakota that lay not far from the farm of her uncle Conrad and aunt Ruth Herigstad, home of her double-cousins with whom she stayed close all of her life.
Marian attended a one room rural school, Westley School, south of Cooperstown. She graduated from Cooperstown High School and Jamestown College. Marian worked as a waitress in Cooperstown during summer break from college and as one of the many female civilian workers who assembled airplanes for World War II in Seattle, WA. She taught high school English in Glenfield ND, Racine WI, and Sharon ND and remained an ardent advocate of proper grammar throughout her long life.
Marian was joined in marriage to Martin Jensen on June 22, 1947, with whom she raised and loved four sons. They were also blessed with wonderful grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She made a loving home for her family and was a good friend to many people of all ages. The year that Martin passed away they would have celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary.
Marian loved to play the piano and had a great appreciation for classical music and all the arts, a passion she passed along to her sons. She enjoyed knitting, crocheting and quilting.
She was active in Church, her sons' schooling, the American Legion Auxiliary and her ‘birthday club'.
Through her entire life Marian was an avid reader and lender of all kinds of books that fed her inquisitive mind. But while being both independent and questioning in her view of the world around her, Marian's spiritual life was grounded in a quiet yet enduring religious belief that sustained her in this life and gave her hope that she would be together with all her loved ones again in the next.
Having lived through many historic events while still young (including the Great Depression, WWII, and the Korean War) Marian felt an abiding obligation to stay informed on current events. She was a steadfast liberal Democrat, unafraid to voice her opinion on public affairs and undeterred by old-fashioned ideas or outdated prejudices.
Marian had a highly developed sense of humor and a heart-warming smile which she shared often with others regardless of her own circumstances, a quality especially appreciated in her final years by those who helped her along an increasingly up-hill path. Marian's unique qualities made her a wonderful wife, mother, sister, cousin, friend, teacher and neighbor; a special person who touched many, many lives over her 89 years.
Now she is gone. And we miss her so much.
Marian is survived by sons, John (Linda & her daughter, Tessa) of Fargo, ND, David of Sharon, ND, Mark of Sioux Falls, SD, Joel (Lauren) of Hopkins, MN; grandchildren, Rachel Nieting & , Matthew (Laura) Harris; great-grandchildren , Kaylee & Karina Nieting, Ashleigh and Emily Harris; sister, Lenore (Frank) Lusson of Madison, WI & their children, Joe & Jean Lusson; niece, Camille Binder & nephews, Bert & Chris Herigstad. Preceded in death by husband, Martin & brother & sister-in-law, Bert & Barbara Herigstad.
(Bilden Funeral Home, Northwood and Hatton, ND)