Thelma R Kessler

Thelma Noehre Kessler, 94, died peacefully on April 13, 2013, surrounded by her family at the Napoleon Care Center in Napoleon, ND. Services will be held at 2:00 pm Saturday, April 20, at Capital Heights Baptist Church, Bismarck, with Rev. W. Allen Thomason and Rev. John Miller officiating. Burial will be in Fairview Cemetery, Bismarck. Visitation will be held from 3:00 pm – 7:00 pm Friday, April 19, at Eastgate Funeral Service, Bismarck, where a prayer service will begin at 7:00 pm. Thelma was born January 19, 1919, in Speers, Saskatchewan, Canada, to James Rueben and Eleanor Maud Newby Chastney. Both parents were born in England and immigrated to Canada in 1912. Thelma attended school at Asgard, Spinney Hill and Gunness while in Canada. In 1942, she married Hans Noehre and they moved to Perdue, Saskatchewan to farm raising wheat, oats, barley and flax. It was not uncommon for winter temperatures to reach -60 degrees, a time when Hans supplemented their income by hunting and selling coyotes. They later moved into Arelee, Saskatchewan to run a shop and Massey Harris business. In 1958, they moved to Lehr, ND, and in more recent years she lived in Bismarck, ND. She had many enjoyments in life including gardening, cooking, baking, canning, and caring for her family. In June 1974 she married Albert Kessler and they lived in Hazen, ND. She is survived by her daughter, Thelma Noehre, Bismarck, ND; sons, Henry Jan Noehre, Magnet, NE, Lorne Jane Noehre, Bismarck, ND, Leonard Faye Noehre, Beulah, ND, Edwin Ellen Noehre, Cross Plains, WI, Patrick Noehre, Fargo, and Leslie Annette Noehre, Grand Forks; 12 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren; one sister-in-law, Pauline Chastney, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada; stepchildren, Ron Carol Kessler, Stanton, Duane Marilyn Kessler, Baldwin, and Chris Terri Christenson, St. Cloud, MN; six step grandchildren and six step-great-grandchildren; many cousins, nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents; husbands Hans Noehre and Albert Kessler; brothers, James Chastney and Ernest Chastney; sisters, Winnifred Greer and Hazel Johnson; and one infant great-grandson. Thelma had many wonderful friends, extended family members and excellent caregivers from the Napoleon Care Center. She would want to thank all of you and put your minds at ease by saying "It was time." Memorials may be given to the First Baptist Church, Mandan, ND, or the Napoleon Care Center, Napoleon, ND.

Thelma R Kessler

January 19, 1919 - April 13, 2013