Dorothy Guderjahn

Dorothy Guderjahn, 100, Jamestown, North Dakota, died Thursday, March 4, 2010 at Hi-Acres Manor Nursing Home in Jamestown.

Dorothy Alice Strietzel was born on May 7, 1909 to Fred and Lota (Gano) Strietzel at the family farm in Fairview Township in rural Rolla, ND. She grew up in the Rolla area helping on the family farm and attended the rural school through eighth grade when an epidemic of Typhoid fever halted her education. Later she cooked for harvesters with her sister, Mina. She learned to sew at an early age and lived with families to sew their seasonal wardrobes. She continued sewing and doing alterations until she moved to Jamestown in 1995, where she lived at the James House for 13 years.

Dorothy married Louis Emil Guderjahn July 12, 1936 at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Oxford Township, ND. They lived on various farms in the area and in Wisconsin until moving into Rolla in 1949. She was a lifetime member of Immanuel Lutheran Church and was active in the LWML. She worked at the Bulova Jewel Bearing Plant for 15 years. She loved to garden and raise flowers. Her hobbies included tatting, crocheting, knitting, needlepoint and ceramics. Her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren treasure her many gifts to them. She collected dolls, enjoyed reading and doing word puzzles. She loved the out-of-doors, music, and any new invention, being one of the first to own a phonograph and later a microwave.

Celebration of Dorothy's 100th birthday was highlighted by taking a helicopter ride arranged by the Dream Team at Hi-Acres Manor. The telephone was the way she stayed connected to friends and family, especially in the later years. She will be missed for her witty sense of humor and her interest in everyone and everything going on around her.

Dorothy is survived by two sons, Curtis (Connie) Guderjahn, Vergas, MN and Russel (Dale) Guderjahn, Jamestown; one daughter, Carole (Larry) Kaleva, Cut Bank, MT; nine grandchildren, Ray (Joleen) Guderjahn, Wichita, KS, Aaron (April) Guderjahn, Felton, MN, Karla (Fred) Grundmann, Cut Bank, MT, Joel (Elizabeth) Kaleva, Missoula, MT, Lisa (Keith) Swenson, White Bear Lake, MN, Amy (Wayne) Prigge, Jamestown, Rick (Kathy) Guderjahn, Rosemont, MN, DeAnne (Brandon) Beavers, Moorhead, MN and Julie (James) Vargas, Horace, ND; 14 great-grandchildren; one brother, Lyman (Marilyn) Strietzel, Williston, ND; and many loving nieces and nephews.

She was preceeded in death by her husband; parents; a son, Randal in 1969; two sisters, Irma Tallman and Mina Guderjahn; and four brothers, Clayson, Lester, Raymond and Gerald.

Arrangements with Eddy Funeral Homel, Jamestown, North Dakota

On line guestbook: www.eddyfuneralhome.com