Service of Remembrance for Fern Sipma, 94, will be Thursday, January 7th, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. at the Centennial Chapel of Evanson Jensen Funeral Home in Hettinger, ND.  Rev. Deb Molbert will officiate and burial will follow at the Hettinger Cemetery.  Special Music will be provided by Allen and Laurie Wicksttom.

Fern Lois Mae Schmidt was born in New England, ND on May 15, 1926 to Paul and Helena (Bohnhoff) Schmidt. She passed from this earth on Sunday, January 3, 2021 at the West River Regional Medical Center in Hettinger, ND.

Fern was born and raised in New England ND. There, she received her formal education, graduating from New England High School in 1944. After graduation, Fern worked in Scranton for a year, then moved to Spokane, WA and worked in a factory to aid in the war effort.

In 1946 she returned to ND and married Charles (Bud) Sipma. Together they built a life as a farm family, first North of Reeder, ND, then beginning in 1958, on a farm South of Bucyrus, ND. They continued to farm and live on that farmstead until semi-retirement in1986. In 1997 they fully retired and moved to Hettinger, ND.

During these years Fern and Bud raised four children: Don (Norma) Sipma of Hettinger, ND, Carol Franks, Tracy (Dawn) Sipma of Dickinson, ND, and Brenda (Bill Dooley) of Portland, OR.

Fern had many passions in her life. In addition to being a loving and caring mother and wife, she was active in Bucyrus Lutheran Church, especially the Ladies Aid. She loved sports, notably the Minnesota Twins, and Portland Trailblazers. She immensely enjoyed bingo (those who knew her well would say she was quite lucky). She also loved to play pinochle and whist. She and Bud spent many evenings at the card tournaments in Lodgepole SD, as well as playing with friends and relatives, and with their children on cold and snowy winter evenings.

In the early 2000s she began writing poetry. She had an ability to tell a story via poetry and became quite accomplished, even having her body of works published: Collected Poems: Crocus. Fern also wrote her memoirs during this time, over 100 pages in length, entitled: Memoirs: In Pursuit of Trivia.

In November of 2013, Fern moved into the Western Horizons Care Center in Hettinger, ND. There she made many new friends and enjoyed a wide variety of activities. She also enjoyed visits with her family and the many friends and relatives who stopped by to see her.

Fern was preceded in death by her husband, Bud; her parents, Paul and Helena Schmidt; her daughter Carol Franks; and three sisters, Alma Schmidt, Marie Hildestad, and Amanda Zastoupil.

She is survived by three children and their spouses: Don and Norma Sipma, Tracy and Dawn Sipma, and Brenda and Bill Dooley, seven grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.

Fern's funeral will be livestreamed for the public on our website, click on her obituary page and condolences to the Sipma family can be sent through our website at www.evansonjensenfuneralhome.com

There will be a public visitation/viewing on Wednesday, January 6, 2021 from 3 to 7pm at the Centennial Chapel of the Evanson-Jensen Funeral Home in Hettinger.  The Family respectfully ask that all who attend the visitation and or the funeral, to please wear a mask.  Thank you.