Myrtle J. (Solsten) Veile, 96
Our dear sweet momma was gently swept up by God’s angels and taken home on the evening of June 4, 2021, with her daughter by her side and her sons with her in loving spirit.
Myrtle was born March 22, 1925 on the farm in rural Cooperstown, North Dakota to Marit and Martin Solsten who were immigrants from Norway. Her first language was Norwegian and it wasn’t until she started school that she learned English. Two sisters and one brother completed her family. She graduated from Cooperstown High School in 1943 and went to Wisconsin with a girlfriend to work at a garment factory. She returned to North Dakota and worked in a restaurant where she met her future husband, Donald. He had just returned from fighting in WWII where he served in Normandy and was awarded three Purple Hearts, one bronze star and other service medals. They married on a very cold, stormy winter day in Valley City, North Dakota on December 15, 1951.
From their marriage four children were born. Mom and Dad settled in Whitefish in 1958 and spent the rest of their lives there. Mom was a lifelong homemaker and Sunday school teacher, and she enjoyed quilting, cooking, and baking (including lefse-making and other Norwegian treats). She was a devout Lutheran and was a member of Christ Lutheran Church in Whitefish for 60+ years. After retirement Mom and Dad traveled for many winters to Arizona in their fifth wheel trailer.
She enjoyed many dinners with family and friends as well as card-playing for pots of pennies and nickels. She made many quilts and blankets for the needy and also baby bolster pillows for the hospital newborns. Taking care of her family was her main priority in life. She moved to Arizona in 2018 to be near her daughter and resided at The Villas of Green Valley Assisted Living.
Survivors include her daughter, Mavis Graves (Bruce) of Green Valley, Arizona, and sons Keith Veile (Bonnie) of Billings, Montana, Dennis Veile (Barb) of Reno, Nevada, and Dale Veile of Columbia Falls, Montana; sisters Olga Jacobson of Fargo, North Dakota, Ragnhild Frey of Mott, North Dakota, and brother Melvin (Diane) Solsten of Rugby, North Dakota; and sister-in-law Norma Ashland of Cooperstown, North Dakota.
She was preceded in death by her mother and father, her husband Don (2015), and daughters-in-law Petra and Mindy.
As she was sometimes called at The Villas, our mamacita, Chiquita or just plain momma, will be missed tremendously by her loving family and everyone who knew her. Many thanks go to her Montana friends who kept in touch with her, including Linda G., Cindy G., Rose N. and all of her Circle friends at Christ Lutheran Church. A memorial service will be held in Whitefish at a later date. Memorials can be made in her name to Christ Lutheran Church or Shepherd’s Hand Clinic, both in Whitefish.
God looked around His garden
And found an empty place.
He then looked down upon the earth
And saw your tired face.
He put his arms around you
And lifted you to rest.
God’s garden must be beautiful
He always takes the best.
He saw the road was getting rough
And the hills were hard to climb,
So He closed your weary eyelids
And whispered “Peace be thine”.
In broke our hearts to lose you
But you didn’t go alone,
For part of us went with you
The day God called you home.
Rest in well-deserved peace, Momma.
We all love you and will see you again in heaven someday.