Elaine Guinn Mahlum, 95, of Bismarck, died Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021, at Missouri Slope.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Nov. 20, 2021, at First Presbyterian Church, 214 E. Thayer Avenue, Bismarck, N.D., with the Rev. Dr. Leanne Simmons officiating. A lunch will follow at the church. Burial will take place at a later date. A livestream of the service will be available on the Bismarck Funeral Home Facebook page.
Visitation will be held Friday, November 19, 2021, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Bismarck Funeral Home.
Rhoda Elaine was born on June 13, 1926, to Horace and Josephine Kline Guinn who farmed near Coulee, N.D., in Montrail County. Elaine put herself through Minot State Teachers College by working at an ice cream factory, which put her off ice cream for good. She dated Victor Mahlum, from Palermo, after he returned from service in World War II. Vic re-enlisted in the Air Force for occupation duty in Japan and the Philippines. After exchanging letters for three years, Vic and Elaine married on Sept. 7, 1949.
Elaine lived the life of an Air Force wife, setting up homes in Georgia, Missouri, Minneapolis, Iowa, Montana, England, and South Carolina. After Vic retired from the Air Force, they settled in Minot to be closer to family. Elaine went back to college and taught for a few years in the Minot area. When their children, Beatrice and Michael, were grown, Vic and Elaine moved to New Mexico, where they lived for the next 15 years. In 1988, they moved to Bismarck to be closer to Mike and his family.
Elaine is survived by her daughter, Beatrice; her daughter-in-law, Rebecca; and her three grandchildren, Johannes, Rachel Shiny, and Sedalia. She is also survived by her sister-in-law, Martha Snyder.
She was proceeded in death by her husband, Victor; her son, Michael; and her 11 siblings.
Memorials for Elaine may be directed to First Presbyterian Church, Bismarck, or Missouri Slope.