Elgie "Gerri" Thompson

To view a copy of Elgie' s (Gerri's) funeral service, click the following link. https://youtu.be/omBY-MwEgFo

The world today is a bit less feisty, having lost Gerri Thompson, age 98, on Saturday, Aug. 20, 2022, in Northwood, N.D.

Born Elgie Geraldine Haroldson to Melvin and Clara (Erickson) Haroldson on April 8, 1924, Gerri was raised in rural Hatton, N.D.

It was here, alongside her brother Gene and sister Mardell, that a spirited young girl learned the do-it-yourself ethic that saw her eventually moving to Oakland, Calif., in the early-1940s to make a life of her own and serving as secretary to the Superintendent of Raw Steel. Hoping to serve her country as the Second World War raged, Gerri left the shipyard office in which she had been working to join the United States Marine Corps Women’s Reserve, enlisting in 1945 and finding herself stationed in the Office of the Commandant in Washington, D.C., following basic training at Camp Lejune, N.C. She would achieve the rank of Corporal.

Returning to North Dakota following her military service, Gerri married the love of her life, fellow veteran and Climax, Minn., native Irvin Thompson, in 1947. The couple made a home in Grand Forks and started a family, which included five children: David (Bridget) Thompson of Victoria, Minn., Rodney (Bonnie) Thompson of Grand Forks, N.D., Judy (Jim) Schill of Grand Forks, N.D., Marsha (Jim) Samson of rural Devils Lake, N.D., and Wesley (Cheryl) Thompson of Thompson, N.D. she is also survived by 12 grandchildren, 25 great grandchildren, and one great great grandchild. As she had earned a degree from Aaker’s Business College following high school, Gerri then served as an administrative assistant for several area organizations, including Agsco, United Lutheran Church, and Sharon Lutheran Church.

Always an independent woman, Gerri grew even more steadfastly self-reliant after the death of Irvin from ALS in 1978 at age 56, managing family holidays and personal finance, healthcare and lawncare, on her own.

All of this is what made Gerri such an inspiration to her friends, family, and grandchildren, in particular, most of whom never knew Irvin. These grandchildren recall fondly spending countless days and nights with Grandma Gerri, who was a frequent baker, amateur poet, fair-weather pianist, and accomplished quilt-maker, in her home on North Fourth Street and her cabin on Roy Lake near Mahnomen, Minn.

Above all, she was a loyal friend who loved nothing more than to share a cup of coffee with those closest to her.

And so today a greater number of friends and family already miss her orange drop cookies and perfectly imperfect doughnuts, the frank and concise way she gave her opinion on everything, and her openness to almost any new experience.

Gerri was predeceased by her parents; her brother Gene and his wife Thelma Haroldson; her brother-in-law Dennis Thompson; one grandson, Steven Samson; and 2 great-grandchildren, baby boy Schoen and Solomon David-Schill

Visitation for Gerri will be from 10 to 11 a.m., followed by a funeral at 11 a.m., on Monday, Aug. 29, at United Lutheran Church in Grand Forks. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to the church.

“Over the fields, across the valley/ On and on across the state/ Grows a flower rich and stately/ Never fearing the course of its fate,” wrote an equally fearless E.G. Thompson in a poem that could double as her autobiography. “By passers-by they are admired/ Throughout the whole day long, / And at the evening set of sun/ Fall asleep awaiting the dawn.”