Eleanor Sheldon, age 84 of Washburn, ND died Friday, October 7, 2011 at the Prairieview Nursing Home in Underwood.

Funeral Services will be held 10:30 A.M. Wednesday, October 12th at First Lutheran Church in Washburn with Pastor Erik Johnson officiating. Interment will follow at the Riverview Cemetery in Washburn.

Visitation will be held from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM Tuesday at Goetz Funeral Home in Washburn.

Eleanor was born July 29, 1927, in Milbank, SD, to Floyd and Iris (Wilkinson) Schoen. She graduated from Ortonville High School in Ortonville, MN, and from North Dakota State University, obtaining a degree in vocational home economics education. She taught in Washburn, ND, where she met Orlen Sheldon. Following their marriage in Ortonville, MN, on January 17, 1953, they made their home on the family farm north of Washburn. There they raised their family and later moved into Washburn. Throughout the years, Eleanor's meals and lunches were enjoyed by her family and hired help during the farming season. Visitors were offered homemade baked goods and coffee. Eleanor enjoyed time with her grandchildren, the coffee ladies, members of her church groups, and the Washburn Study Club. She was a member of the Alpha Gamma Delta sorority.


She is survived by two daughters, Andrea (Bradley) Holtan, Beulah, & Linnea (Richard) Schaible, Old Hickory, TN; two sons, George (Laurie) Sheldon, Washburn, and Richard Sheldon, Apple Valley, MN; ten grandchildren, Laura (Grant) Labatte, Alison (Mike) Just, Ryan Holtan, Alexis Schaible, James Sheldon, Aaron Schaible, Michael Sheldon, Jonathan Schaible, Sadie Sheldon, Victoria Sheldon, and JoAnna Schaible; five great-grandchildren, Tanner Holtan, Haley Labatte, Sydney Labatte, Bethany Just, and Arabelle Just; two brothers, Dick Schoen, St. Paul, MN, and David Schoen, Corona, CA; and many nieces and nephews.

Eleanor was preceded in death by her husband (Orlen), and her parents.