Leland Brand

Leland Brand

Prayer Service for Leland Brand, 104, of Taylor, N.D., will be 7 p.m. Wednesday, December 3, 2025, at Stevenson Funeral Home, Dickinson, with Pastor Mike Pretzer officiating. Burial will take place at a later date.

Visitation will take place from 6 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, December 3, 2025, at Stevenson Funeral Home.

Leland passed away Tuesday, November 25, 2025, at his home, with his family by his side.

Carl Leland Johnson (Leland/Lee) was born on June 14, 1921, on a ranch 12 miles south of Taylor in Stark County, N.D. His parents were Carl A. P. Johnson and Henrietta Connie Larsen. Leland was the youngest of four children born to this union. His mother, Connie, passed away when Lee was 2 and a half years old. He and his sister Charlotte then went to live with their uncle and aunt, Samuel and Catherine Johnson Brand. Lee's father remarried, and Florence (Johnnie) was born to this union.

Lee was raised on the Stone Hammer Ranch a few miles south of Taylor where he became an avid horseman and hunter. He graduated from Taylor High School and attended North Dakota Agricultural College (NDSU) in Fargo, majoring in agricultural engineering. He participated in ROTC and track, breaking the school record in the hurdles.

Lee's love of flying started early in his life, and his expertise led to his becoming an instructor in a Navy flight school in Minot, N.D. That is where he met Gail Jewel Dasher. They were married on October 6, 1944, and moved to the Stone Hammer Ranch at the end of World War II. In addition to ranching and farming, Lee remained an active pilot doing acrobatics, crop spraying and coyote hunting. He was active in community of Taylor, playing baseball and supporting all of the activities in the Taylor schools.

He and Gail raised four daughters; Jo Carol, Lynn, Nancy, and Barbara (Dub). A very difficult time in their lives was the 1968 death of Jo Carol in a commercial airline crash. Lee had a broad range of interests and enjoyed following the activities of his daughters, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, whether they be music, athletic, or equestrian.

Lee's passion was flying. He was a contract pilot for the federal government, primarily hunting coyotes. He was the first president of the N.D. Flying Farmers organization, and he served as a commissioner of the N.D. Aeronautics Commission. He was an inaugural inductee to the N.D. Aviation Hall of Fame. Most memorable was his mercy flight that saved the life of a baby who was sick with pneumonia but whose family was snowed in and unable to get him to the hospital. Leland's life summary as a pilot can be viewed on YouTube-"North Dakota Aviation Hall of Fame Leland Brand the Flying Farmer."

At 104 years old, Lee outlived three of his siblings, Arthur Johnson, Paul Johnson and Charlotte Johnson Brand Bollyn. Also proceeding him in death were his wife Gail, daughter Jo Carol, and son-in-law, Dennis Dohrmann. Continuing his legacy are his sister, Florence, daughters Lynn Tool, Nancy Kleingartner, Barbara Dohrmann, 11 grandchildren, 20 great-grandchildren, and 3 great-great-grandchildren.

Lee lived his life to the fullest, never wanting to waste a minute. He was a voracious reader and life-long learner. Lee grew to admire Native American culture, and he spent years searching for arrowheads and other Indian artifacts. His favorite charities were those benefitting Native American youth. He especially appreciated the Crow belief that there is no end to life; there are no goodbyes, because we will see each other again. An Apsaalooke Tribal belief that Lee wanted shared at his funeral is, "Don't weep too long, for I have returned to my Creator...I am in the minds and hearts of the many lives I have touched."