Julia Pauline (Nicolaisen) Neshem, 95, died Wednesday, September 28, 2016 in a Minot nursing home.

Julia was born on her grandparent's farm south of Minot in Sundre Township on December 22, 1920. Growing up, Julia, along with her parents Erling and Minnie, and her brother Herman, only spoke Norwegian. She once told us it was a little scary when she started country school because the teacher only spoke English. Julia caught on quickly and in her later years claimed she hardly remembered any Norwegian, although "jeg elsker deg" seemed to roll off her tongue easily and frequently. In 9th grade she began attending Minot High School. Following her high school graduation in 1938, Julia attended Minot Business College. As a young adult she was employed at Trinity Hospital, First National Bank, and Janz & Iverson CPA.

During the summer of 1944, Julia met Francis "Bub" Neshem from Lonetree and he swept her off her feet. They married six months later. Regarding their quick courtship, Julia once remarked, "my poor parents, I don't know what I'd do if one of my girls did that to me." Julia and Bub spent their honeymoon on a train to San Francisco where Bub shipped out for active duty on a cruiser in the Pacific Ocean. After Bub came back from the war they made their home south of Lonetree, moving to what is now the family farm just east of Berthold in 1951. Together Bub and Julia, with Julia handling the business end of the operations, started several businesses including F.L. Neshem Construction (now operating as Gratech Company, LLC), Western Builders, Inc., and a successful family farm (now operating as Flatland Farms). IN ADDITION, she raised five kids, served three meals and two coffee breaks daily, made homemade bread each week, canned the best cherries, peaches, and pears, made even better chocolate bars from scratch, decorated wedding cakes for many of her children and grandchildren, and still found time to get her hair done every Friday morning so Bub could take her dancing at the Elks, and eventually the Moose, every Saturday night.

Throughout her life, Julia made and kept friends. She had a special way of making each person feel included and cared for. Every day she looked at her Berthold Lion's Club calendar to see whose birthday or anniversary it was and then she'd call each person on the list to wish them a happy day. Up until a few years ago she was still getting together with her high school classmates, and lunch with her cousins was always a priority. A simple trip, from one end of Town & Country Shopping Center to the other, took at least a half an hour because she couldn't go ten steps without running into someone she cared about.

Julia did not slow down in her "retirement" either. Until five years ago she still attended water aerobics three times a week at the YMCA, often arriving early so she could walk a mile on the track before class. She was an active member of the Moose Lodge and loved performing with the Polkateers. At Zion Lutheran Church in Berthold, she was involved in all the women's organizations, attended many state and national conventions, and helped make numerous banners that now decorate the church. Over the years she was also active on the Berthold School Board and the Lonetree Homemakers group. When Julia did sit down, she was not idle she always had an embroidery project near at hand.

In the last two decades of her life, it was clear to all who knew Julia that she had two passions: Metigoshe Ministries, especially its annual quilt auction, and all the children in town who called her "Grandma."

On the last Saturday in June, Julia could be found with her daughter-in-law Nancy and granddaughters Wendy, Nikki, and Carey, sitting in the front row of the annual Metigoshe Ministries quilt auction. Great-grandchildren would come and go all day long, and many times granddaughters would fly in from Texas and Florida for the annual outing with Grandma. Julia specialized in the quilts no one else was bidding on and it was not uncommon for her to end the day having purchased 20-25 quilts. Each grandchild went home with a quilt, and the remaining quilts were handed out to the camp counselors. If she saw a counselor bidding on a quilt, she would outbid that counselor and give him or her the quilt as a gift. The 2016 auction was the first one she was unable to attend since Metigoshe started holding the auction in 1983. Beyond the quilt auction, Julia and Bub were fervent supporters and benefactors of the camp and its ministry.

Finally, Julia's grandchildren. At one point, not that long ago, every child in the Berthold School knew her as "Grandma Julia." For 10 years, she baked dozens of chocolate chip and sugar cookies to take to the school EACH month. She would go to the elementary class rooms, hug each child, read the class a book and hand out cookies. Shouts of "Grandma Julia," accompanied by the sound of running feet, could be heard throughout the school on Grandma Julia days. When the kids were in 3rd grade, Julia would have them two or three at a time out to her house to bake with her. For many years she spoke to the senior class about her life growing up on a farm in the 1920s, and she even taught a couple classes how to make lefse. As one mother said, "we could all learn a lesson from Grandma Julia making all people feel special and loved and not just choosing some over othersthank you for being the person you were."

Julia's loving family includes: Harley (Nancy) Neshem, Evonne (David) Borgardt, Gary (Becky) Neshem, Laurie (John Roeckner) Neshem, Grandchildren: Carey (Terry) Burke, Marte Neshem, Mikael (Johnathon) Marburger, Wendy (Wade) Hornberger, Nicole (Dustin) Myers, Eric (Amanda) Neshem, Leah Reed, Jacob Mau, Taylor Mau, Haley Neshem, Cale Neshem; Great-Grandchildren: William, Grace & Thomas Burke, Branden, Noah & Annabelle Neshem-Casso, Stella Marburger, Kara & Colby Hornberger, Ethan & Karter Myers, Brooklyn, Madison & Colton Neshem, Taylor Reed; several nieces, nephews, cousins, and countless lifelong and new friends including Dale Dustin.

She was preceded in death by her husband, her parents, son Larry Neshem, son-in-law Bill Richardson, brother Herman (Olive) Nicolaisen.

Celebration of Life: Tuesday, October 4, 2016 at 11:00 a.m. in Zion Lutheran Church Berthold.
Family Prayer Service: Monday at 7:00 p.m. in the chapel of Thomas Family Funeral Home
Visitation: Monday from 3:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m. in the chapel of Thomas Family Funeral Home
Memorials are preferred to Metigoshe Ministries.