Bernice I. Bergseth

Bergseth, Bernice Irene (Johnson) January 6, 1919 - May 21, 2021 Bernice passed away peacefully on May 21 at age 102. Survived by brother, Richard Johnson, Cambridge, MN; son Jerry (Karen), grandsons Jason Bergseth (Anmarie Henderson) and Casey Bergseth (Jennifer Winebarger) Minneapolis; son Steve (Jocelyn Olson) St. Paul; daughter Gayle Skibinski (Jeff), grandsons Ian and Randy Holmes, great grandchildren Mayson and Karmen, Chester, VA. Preceded in death by parents Ludwig and Emma Johnson, her husband of 62 years Dale, and brothers Mauritz, Chester & Virgil. Bernice was born January 6, 1919 on a small farm in West Rock, Minnesota. She attended a one-room elementary school and graduated from Pine City High School in 1936. She impressed the County Agent during a one-week internship in her senior year and was offered a job after graduation. That led to a career in government service, including a job with the War Department in Washington, D.C. and the years until her retirement with the US Department of Agriculture in Minneapolis. She met her future husband Dale in 1938 as she stepped off the merry- go-round at the Sandstone Fair. She was soon off to Washington, but came home to see him off before he joined the Army Air Corps and served overseas in World War II. They were married on the farm soon after he returned in 1945. When the family outgrew the Minneapolis duplex they shared with Dale's brother Lyle and family in 1954, they moved to a house in Edina where she lived for almost 60 years. Bernice and Dale grew up listening and dancing to Big Band music well into their 80's. She will be remembered most for her devotion to family and friends. No snowbird trip after retirement was complete without stops along the way to visit friends and relatives, or a chance to dance to live music at a Big Band Concert. She never talked about herself unless asked, she was always more interested in what others were doing. She shared love for her favorite teams, Twins, Vikings and Gophers (and football season tickets) with her sons and grandsons, and enjoyed doing jigsaw puzzles, crosswords and Cryptoquip every day. An extended family of Johnson and Bergseth nieces, nephews, cousins, and relatives in Sweden will miss her warmth, beautiful smile and graciousness, but they will be able to follow her life and travels in journals she lovingly wrote. A gathering to celebrate her extraordinary life will be held at a later date. Interment at Fort Snelling National Cemetery Columbarium. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to Jones-Harrison Residence and Grace Hospice for the skilled and compassionate care she received during the extreme challenges of a pandemic. The family is so very grateful for the kindness of Latchman, her nurse at JH who also had cared for her husband Dale. Washburn-McReavy.com Edina Chapel 952-920-3996