Groton: Services for Ruth Thompson, 87, of Groton will be 10 a.m. Friday, April 26, 2013, at the United Methodist Church in Groton. Pastor Nancy Manning will officiate.
Burial will take place at a later date in Groton Union Cemetery, under the direction of Paetznick-Garness Funeral Chapel in Groton.
Visitation will be held at the church on Thursday from 4-8 p.m., with a prayer service at 7 p.m.
Ruth Thompson was born to Melvin and Laura (Lensegrav) Smith, rural Kidder. She was baptized and confirmed at the Pleasant Valley Lutheran Church rural Kidder. After graduation from Havana High School, she attended Northern State College, graduating with a degree of secondary education. She taught school in Marshall County at Newark and in Brown County at Hecla and Groton.
She married Ivan Thompson on Aug. 29, 1948, and they lived on the Thompson farmstead Northwest of Groton. After the passing of Ivan in July 1984, she remained on the farm until September 2006, when she moved to Sun Dial Manor in Bristol. She resided until the time of her death on Sunday, April 21, 2013.
Ruth was a member of the Eastern Star, Diana Chapter 83 of Groton and also a member of Putney Ladies Aid.
Survivors include four children: daughters, Cindy (Gregg) Finlay of Apple Valley, Minn., Janice (Kurt) Haugland of Mesa, Ariz., and Janet Thompson of Tempe, Ariz., and son, Lee (Jennifer) Thompson of Groton; five grandchildren: Rebecca Finlay (Andrew) Twedt of St. Paul, Minn., Ian Finlay of Boulder Colo., Shay (Lynn) Thompson of Centerville, Minn., and James Thompson and Emily Thompson of Groton; two great-grandchildren: Michael and Mason Thompson of Centerville, Minn.; her sister, Blanche Schlagel of Britton; brother-in-law, Reuben Reisenweber of Lidgerwood; and sister-in-law, Inga Smith of Foreman, N.D.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Ivan; her parents; her sister, Harriet Reisenweber; and her brother, Tom Smith.
Casketbearers will be: Sam Smith, Mark Reisenweber, Claude Schlagel, Ralph Smith, Terry Thompson and Gary Thurston.
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