Rita Braun

Rita A. Braun, age 95, Rosholt, SD, passed away Wednesday, January 16, 2019, at the Countryside Inn Assisted Living in Rosholt.

Funeral Mass will be Monday, January 21, at 10:30 a.m. at St. John's Catholic Church in Rosholt with Father Gregory Frankman officiating. Music will be provided by organist Lana Sand and vocalists Lindsey Aberle, Dayle Haaland, and Jerry Nelson.

Burial will be at a later date in the St. Nicholas Cemetery, rural Rosholt. Honorary pallbearers will be all of Rita's grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and day care kids. Active pallbearers will be Patrick Curran, Daniel Curran, Tyler Braun, Dustin Braun, Jordan Braun, Preston Braun, Grady Olson, and Corey Foltz.

Visitation will be Sunday from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. at the Eggers Funeral Home in Rosholt. There will be a prayer service at 7:00 p.m. at the church. Visitation will continue Monday morning one hour prior to the service at the church.

Rita Adeline was born January 25, 1923, to Jacob and Bertha (Mueller) Pulskamp on the family farm near Cummings, ND. At just 6 weeks old, she had pneumonia and was not expected to live. She attended school through 4 ^th grade in Cummings, then attended Eldorado #5 Country School through the 8 ^th grade. She attended high school at the Notre Dame Academy in Willow City, ND, graduating in 1940. She and her sisters boarded there and only got to go home for Christmas break.

After graduation, Rita went to Batesville, IN, with her uncle and aunt and worked for a family doing the cooking and laundry, later taking a job as a waitress. She saved all the dimes she got for tips and bought her set of silverware.

A couple years later Rita returned to the family farm to help with the cooking. She attended the first Mass said by her cousin, Fr. Maurice Mueller. It was here where she met Ambrose Braun; the rest is history. They were married by Fr. Maurice on June 15, 1950, at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church in Hillsboro, ND. They lived on the Brandenburger farm just south of Rosholt where they raised their ten children. In 1967, they moved to the Kitzman farm just east of Rosholt. She and Ambrose farmed and raised pigs, chickens, cattle and milked cows. She was known as the egg lady for many years. Rita always had large gardens, raising an acre of potatoes and all sorts of vegetables which she canned. For a couple years, she raised cucumbers and sold them in New Effington for pickles.

For several years, Rita babysat for area kids as well as some of her grandkids. Lindsey and Corey Foltz were very special to her. She sewed most of the clothes for her kids as well as all her own clothes. There was always a lot of laundry to do, keeping the clothes lines full of all sizes of clothes. She was an avid baker making caramel rolls and at least 12 dozen "South Dakota buns" every Saturday. There was always every kind of cookie, coffee cakes and bars. At Christmas time she made lefse and all kinds of goodies.

It wasn't until her kids were grown and gone, that Rita began to quilt and make teddy bears, rabbits, dolls, doll clothes and Barbie doll furniture. She continued making quilt tops and teddy bears until just a couple months ago. She donated hundreds of quilt tops to the Rosholt area quilters to be finished and sent to the missions overseas. She donated to the St. John's Sausage Fest each year and gave a lot of quilts as wedding and graduation gifts. Each of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren have a bear or a quilt to remember her by.

Rita enjoyed playing Uno with her grandkids and playing Sorry Charlie (a dice game) with Ambrose or anyone who wanted to sit with her. She played the accordion and the organ/keyboard well but couldn't read a note of music. She was a member of St. Nicholas Catholic Church and then St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Rosholt. Ambrose passed away in 1999. She continued to live on the farm until her health made it necessary to move to Countryside Inn in Rosholt in June of 2010.

Rita is survived by her children: Bill (Toni) of Rosholt; Art (Pat) of St. Cloud, MN; Leo (Barb) of West Fargo, ND; Jeff (Marilyn) of Kelowna, British Columbia; Ralph (Julie) of Zimmerman, MN; Ruth (Dayle) Haaland of Veblen, SD; John (Karen) of Rosholt; and Karen (Bob) Thompson of Bruce, SD; two daughters-in-law: Connie of Leonard, ND; and Cheri of Rosholt; siblings: Sr. Eloise Marie and Sr. Mary Jane of Valley City, ND; Joe of Hillsboro, ND; Bertha Panther of Ft. Madison, IA; Leo (Roberta) of Grand Rapids, MN; 25 grandchildren; 34 great-grandchildren; and 3 great-great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her husband Ambrose; an infant son; two sons, Victor and Philip; a granddaughter; a grandson; two great-granddaughters; a son-in-law, Robert Curran; a brother, Al; and three sisters, Cecelia, Rosemary and Sr. Mary Leo.