Dorothy Thoreson, age 88 of Minot, formerly of Ruso, ND, passed away January 8th, 2011 at Trinity Medical Center in Minot.

Funeral Services will be held at 10:30 AM Tuesday, January 11th at St. Olaf Lutheran Church of rural Turtle Lake with Pastor Randy Emgarten officiating.

Interment will take place at a later date at East Crooked Lake Cemetery, rural Ruso, ND.

Visitation will be held from 4:30 PM to 7:00 PM Monday at Goetz Funeral Home in Turtle Lake and continue Tuesday, one hour prior to time of service at the church.

Dorothy was born April 23, 1922 in Marshall, MN to Hoke A. & Lydia (Moser) Smith. The family lived in Milbank, SD until 1933 and then moved to Balfour, ND where Dorothy attended school. She married Albert Schmidt in 1938 and they resided at Strawberry Lake where they operated a restaurant. To this union five children were born (Russell, LuJean, Karen, Darrow, & Gaylin). Albert was killed in a car accident near Velva in 1950. Dorothy married Orville Thoreson on June 1, 1952 at Ruso, ND. They resided in Ruso until 1954 when they moved to the Thoreson homestead and continued farming. To this union three children were born (Norman, Faith, & Hope). Dorothy was very active during her lifetime. She was a member of the East Crooked Lake Lutheran Church until its closure and then became a member of St. Olaf Lutheran Church. She served as the McLean County Farmers Union youth leader for 25 years and sold Avon products for 10 years. Dorothy was employed by St. Joseph's Hospital in Minot for 12 years and the Easter Seals Society for many years. She was a longtime member of the 29th Homemakers Club and the East Crooked Lake Ladies Aide. In 1989, she and Orville retired from farming and moved to Minot. Orville passed away in 1990 and Dorothy continued to make her home in Minot. In most recent years she was a resident of the Edgewood Vista, The View, and ManorCare Health Center. Dorothy was most happy when she could be with her family. She enjoyed playing cards and making crafts. Her family is left with fond memories of all the wonderful things she created and loved to give away.

Those grateful to have shared in her life are her daughters, LuJean Shirley of Mesa, AZ, Karen (Jerry) Hutter of Port Townsend, WA, Faith (Brad) Hahn of Turtle Lake, & Hope (Jay) Brown of Berthold; sons, Gaylin (Nadean) Schmidt of Minot, Darrow Schmidt of Mesa, AZ, & Norman (Peggy) Thoreson of Ruso; sixteen grandchildren, nineteen great-grandchildren, & three great-great grandchildren; two sisters, Jean Falstad of Mesa, AZ, & Darlene Auch of Centralia, MO.

Dorothy was preceded by her husbands (Albert Schmidt & Orville Thoreson), one son (Russell), and two grandchildren (Cameron & Polly).