Dorothy Brusven

1915 - 2007

Dorothy Brusven, 92, died at home in Bozeman in the early afternoon of Sunday, Aug. 12, 2007.

Dorothy was born at her parents' home in rural Larson, N.D., on March 2, 1915, the daughter of Frank and Tillie (Kleinschmidt) Witty. She attended country school and so loved those years of early learning that she counted it her loss when she was promoted directly from fourth to sixth grade.

Dorothy Witty and John Brusven were united in marriage on June 11, 1936, at the parsonage of the Rev. Aarthun in Lignite, N.D. Their first home was the Brusven farm.

In the seasonal employ of Roy Bonsness and with two sons, the scale house of the Domrese coal mine served as a temporary winter home.

The family rented and moved onto the Jake Schouten farm, in the neighborhood of their own, in 1942. To be closer to school, they bought the Clarence Grindy place and settled on the outskirts of Columbus. There they built a new home in 1954 which remained Dorothy's official residence up to the present.

In 1990 and out of concern for John's health, Dorothy and "Johnny" moved in with their son, Lavern, in Bozeman. With John's death on Oct. 27, 1990, Dorothy's 'temporary' move to Bozeman became more permanent.

She remained a member of Trinity Lutheran Church in Columbus. She was active in the congregational life of sister churches in Bozeman, as well as a treasured person at the Bozeman Senior Center.

She was a regular in the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), and she was a valued supporter and "guest worker" for local Sons of Norway events and activities, from baking lefse and Norse pastries and learning the folk stitching and art forms of Hardanger and Rosmaling.

Because she cared and always conveyed genuine interest and concern, she made friends easily and had a knack for finding North Dakota connections when meeting new people.

Dorothy was a faithful, loving wife, mother and caregiver to an extended family and friends.

She is survived by her three children: Merlyn (Glenna) of Genesee, Idaho, Lavern of Bozeman and Luanna Peters of Sausalito, Calif.; three grandchildren: Laura (Terry) Helms of Pitkin, Colo., Marcie (Gary) Gonser of Castle Rock, Wash., and Paul (Annette) Brusven of Moscow, Idaho; eight great-grandchildren: Hayden, Cheyanne, Zachary and Jamie Van Dyke, Nathan and Erica Gonser and Tessa and Cole Brusven.