Funeral services for Barbara Olson, age 81, of Lemmon will be 10:00am Wednesday, February 15, at the Prairie Hills Church of God in Lemmon with Pastor Steve Thomas, officiating. A private burial will be in the Riverside Ranch Family Cemetery on the Cedar River north of Watauga.


A family service will be held at 7:00pm on Tuesday evening at the Evanson-Jensen Funeral Home in Lemmon. Special music will be provided by Pat Peterson and Jasmin Thomas. Serving as casket bearers are Craig Sauer, Lonn Campbell, Michael Johnson, Justin and Shane Gannon, and Grant Schweitzer. All friends and neighbors are considered honorary bearers.


Barbara was born PALENA BARA ERLENSDOTTIR on the high seas near Isofjord, Iceland on July 25, 1924 to Erllendur Simanason and Guony Helgadottir. She was named after the ocean. In Icelandic, Bara means ocean. She grew up in a poor country village in a life of abuse, poverty, and neglect. Her only escape was going to work for often grueling hours in the biggest city in Iceland, Reykjavik. Realizing she wasn't wanted by her father, one night when a ship was leaving their town of Isofjord at midnight, her mother helped her escaped out a window with her suitcase. On her own, alone, and only 12 years of age her first job was baby-sitting. At age 14, she began waitressing in a café and she worked there until age 20 when she met Arnold Olson, a Sergeant in the U.S. Army. He had been stationed in Iceland for 4 years and was born in nearby Norway. When Arnold was a baby, his parents immigrated to America and he grew up in the Almont, ND area. After meeting Arnold and dating him for 6 months, he asked Barbara to marry him and move to America. They were united in marriage on August 4, 1945 in Iceland. The same night they got married, Arnold shipped out before her immigration papers could be processed. Their honeymoon lasted 5 whole hours. Seven months later Barbara boarded a ship and headed for America arriving four days later on February 11, 1946. The fairy tale was finally getting to the good part for Barbara, the man she married was very good to her, she loved him very much, and he took her to America, a new country, a new way of life, and for once a chance to look forward to the future. "The love people have for one another in America it was the greatest thing I learned".


When Barbara arrived at the Olson family homestead, she didn't recognize Arnold, who had grown a great big red beard. She didn't know what a farm was. She had to learn how to bake bread, milk cows, and help with the haying and the harvesting. She continued to scrub and wash clothes by hand for 3 years until she learned that in America, there were washing machines. Thanks to her mother-in-law, Barbara also learned how to bake. Fine tuning her own recipes is what made her recipes and her cookies some of the best in this world. She didn't follow any cookbook, and some of her favorite recipes she kept in her memory. She loved baking cookies for her church family and numerous community organizations and events.


The couple lived on a ranch west of Almont from 1946 to 1951, and then moved to a ranch south of Carson, ND. In 1954, Barbara became a U.S. citizen. In 1955, they moved to a ranch north of Watauga on the Cedar River. Their only child, Mary Ann was 5 days old when the Olson's brought her home.


On May 3, 1984 her husband Arnold passed away. Barbara moved to Lemmon where she would find a whole new life. She met Robert Lensegrav, and together they began volunteering at area nursing homes and singing with the "Baker Band". She loved to sing and graciously shared her music in song and used her life experiences to communicate to young adults and children. She wanted them to understand the value of loving one another and the value of showing love and compassion to others. She very affectionately referred to everyone as "Honey".


Always near and dear to her heart was her Lord Jesus Christ. When times where getting tough and she needed guidance in her life, she would refer to her Bible, which gave her much strength and encouragement. She was a member of the Church Of God, who was her extended family and was always there for her.


Barbara entered her eternal home on Saturday, February 11, at the West River Regional Medical Center in Hettinger with her daughter at her side. The date of her death also marks her 60 year anniversary since her arrival in the United States.


Keeping her in their fondest memories are her daughter and son-in-law, Mary Ann and Clifford Johnson, Watauga, SD; 6 grandchildren, Laura (Craig) Sauer, Wilton, ND; Amanda (Lonn) Campbell, McIntosh, SD; Stacey Johnson (Justin Gannon), Rapid City, SD; Hayli and Krista Johnson, Watauga, SD; Michael (Angie) Johnson, Aberdeen, SD; 7 great grandchildren, Brady, Bailey, Bodey, Molly Sauer; and Christian Campbell; Kyler and Hunter Johnson; and special friends Louise Cain, her late husband Jack, and their families.


She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Arnold, her 2 brothers, Ebbinis and Haraman; and 3 sisters, Stina, Fjola, and Sikka; and a very special friend, Robert Lensegrav on September 4, 2004.


A memorial has been established.