George Ogdahl

Visitation: Thursday, August 17, 2006 from 1:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Stevenson & Sons Funeral Home in Miles City

Funeral Service: Friday, August 18, 2006 at 2:00 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Miles City

Interment: Eastern Montana State Veterans Cemetery in Miles City with full military honors provided by VFW Post #1579.

GeorgeOgdahl, age 88, of Miles City passed away on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 at the Shady Lane Care Home.

George was born in Chance, South Dakota on December 23, 1917, the son of Gilbert and Juliet (Iverson) Ogdahl. He attended schools in Chance, South Dakota and following his schooling, he moved to Montana where he worked for area ranchers in Eastern Montana and South Dakota. George entered the United States Army, serving during World War II and the European Theatre. Following his honorable discharge, he returned to South Dakota where he married Arlene Spencer on December 29, 1946 in Faith, South Dakota. They later moved toPowderville, Montana where they worked for theJurica Ranch until 1947 when they purchased their own ranch in the Pine Hills.

Mara Mercer, at the age of 8, best describes her grandfather in the following essay. My grandfather, George Ogdahl, is a very extraordinary man. He can, and will, do anything from building fence to fixing water springs. He lives in Miles City, Montana with his wife Arlene on their ranch 25 miles out of town where they still run cattle. I love going back there because there's no one around. It's always calm. Theres always a definite smell at the ranch, I never really liked the smell, but it was all over, so I got used to it. Now that I think about it, I think that aroma is what the world really smells like, beneath all the scents of today's life. George is a run of the mill height man who has clearly been in exceptional shape his entire life. He has some fuzzy white hair, which is usually covered by a cap or cowboy hat when he's outside, which is almost always. He has glasses just like his wife and my mom and is always wearing cowboy boots and blue jeans. His face is dark and wrinkled from the sun and makes his eyes stand out. When he smiles, his eyes light up, and it makes you want to smile, too. George is a very polite, pleasant person. He is very courteous to everyone. I think he's made everyone else who know him a better individual. That's just the way he is. Everyone in Miles City really cares about each other. He's also a very tough person. He's experienced many hard times in his life, but he's still living today.

I remember one time a few years ago when I was at my grandparents I found some, what I thought, was treasure. Well, it turned out to be just a whole bunch of nothing, but also a whole lot of something. "How old is this stuff?" I asked holding up an aged, soiled, tattered, leather sole of a very tiny shoe. "Do you think it belonged to someone legendary?" I was tremendously excited. I had been standing on top of a hill overlooking my grandparents ranch when I had seen a little piece of something. It was the handle of a china cup half buried in the dirt. I started scraping around with my shoes. I was soon on my knees. In 20 minutes I had a bag full of all sorts of weird things. I brought all the stuff home and I was now driving my grandpa crazy with my questions.

"Where'd ya find all this, Mara?" my grandpa asked.

"Up on top of the hill above the fishpond." I told him.

"Oh, well this stuff probably belonged to Hemmingway." I stood up. Hemmingway! "You mean the author?" "No Mara," my mom whispered.
"Hemmingway was the fella who lived here before us," said my grandpa. "He herded sheep. Where all this stuff was found was where his house was." "This stuff belonged, to a sheepherder?"

"Yep. That shoe you're holding belonged to one of his daughters."

I was pretty disappointed, but it was fun to learn about all those bizarre things, and I got to bring all of it to school and tell my class about Hemmingway the sheepherder. My grandpa has been a role model to many people, including me. I've always looked to him as a superhero. I know he can do anything. I bet he could even save the world. Well, maybe.

George is survived by a son, Monte (Sandy Ward) Ogdahl of Santa Fe, NM; two daughters: Mary Ogdahl of Miles City, MT; and Bev Axelsen of Livingston, MT; a brother, Marvin Ogdahl of Sturgis, SD; a sister, Ethel Engebretson of Spearfish, SD; three grandchildren: Lars Axelsen of Bozeman, MT, Peter Axelsen of Boise, ID and Mara Mercer of Kalispell, MT.

George was preceded in death by his parents and his wife, Arlene, a son, Tommy and a grandson, Zailm.

Visitation will be held on Thursday, August 17, 2006 from 1:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Stevenson & Sons Funeral Home in Miles City. Funeral services will be held on Friday, August 18, 2006 at 2:00 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Miles City. Interment will follow in the Eastern Montana State Veterans Cemetery in Miles City with full military honors provided by VFW Post #1579. Condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.stevensonandsons.com.