Click Here to View the Funeral for Joanne

Joanne Miller, age 82 of Lemmon, passed from this life on Thursday evening, March 24, 2022 at the West River Regional Medical Center in Hettinger, ND.

The Funeral Service for Joanne will be held at 11:00am MT Monday, March 28, 2022 at Calvary Lutheran Church in Lemmon.  Pastor Charlotte Kvale will officiate with burial in Greenhill Cemetery at Lemmon.

The Funeral Service will be live streamed on the website www.evansonjensenfuneralhome.com and going to Joanne's obituary and clicking on "view funeral service here".

Special music for the service will be provided by Marilyn Willey.

Serving as casketbearers are Joanne's grandchildren. All friends are considered honorary bearers.

Joanne Louise Vatland was born at the Lemmon Hospital on March 25, 1939 to Clarence and Stella (Smith) Vatland.  Joanne lived about 2 miles east and 5 miles south of Morristown until 1945 when their home burned to the ground.  At that time, they moved to a house a few miles closer to Morristown.  Joanne attended rural Pioneer school for grades 1-3.  After the house burned, she attended school in Morristown until it was time for high school.

When Joanne's parents came to homestead in Corson County around 1910, they got together with their neighbors and formed the Bethel Lutheran Church in Morristown.  This is the same church that Joanne was confirmed in.

In order for Joanne to attend high school in Lemmon, she boarded in town.  She lived with a doctor and his family and took care of his children.  She would have to come home over her lunch break and feed his children and feed herself and run back to school.  She did not like this arrangement so attended her last two years of school in McIntosh where there was a bus that would take her home every night.

In May of 1956, after graduation, Joanne started working at the First International Bank in Lemmon.  It was here she met Loren Miller.  Loren and Joanne were married in Bison South Dakota by the Lutheran Minister on July 9 1958 after they had already driven to Hettinger to be married.  When they got to Hettinger, they were told they had to be married in the state where their license was issued so they rushed to get to Bison and find a minister to marry them.  They then honeymooned in the Black Hills.

Loren and Joanne had 4 children, Sherrie, Randy, Sandy and Greg.  She said her greatest accomplishment was her children and loved them all very much.  She was an avid supporter of her grandkids attending many of their events and taking them together on mini vacations.

In 1980, after several years of bad winter weather, Loren and Joanne moved into town.  Joanne loved her house in town.  It was during this time that Joanne became active in CLCW and a beef organization called the Cowbells.  Joanne and Loren had many friends in Lemmon and often enjoyed taking trips and cruises with their friends.  They made more friends as they wintered in Arizona and summered in Spearfish Canyon.

Surviving family members include 2 sons and 1 daughter-in-law, Randy and Cheryl Miller, Shadehill, SD; Greg Miller (Mary), Rochester, NY; 2 daughters and sons-in-law, Sherrie and Jim Feist, White Owl, SD; Sandy and Mark Baumberger, Watauga, SD; 9 grandchildren; Tanner (Heliena), Jessie (Ross), Alise (Todd), Aimee (Evan), Layne, Krista (Max), Keri (Levi), Tia (Colin), Lauren (Britt), 5 great grandchildren, Sadie, Westin, Joe, Paisley, and William; and brother-in-law, Burton (Marianne) Miller, Rapid City, SD.
Joanne was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Loren on July 3, 2020, her sister and brother-in-law, Jean and John Kahl.

Visitation will be on Sunday from 1:00 to 7:00pm at the Evanson-Jensen Funeral Home in Lemmon and on Monday one hour prior to services at the church.

A memorial has been established to Calvary Lutheran Church.