A beloved wife and mother, Karen Gail Odden Lindemann (“Gail”) passed away peacefully on Saturday, August 6, 2022, at home in Bismarck. Gail was born on June 5, 1938 in Portland, North Dakota, child of Agnes (Petterson) Odden and Martin Odden. Losing her daddy, as she called him, at a relatively young age, Gail and her siblings grew up living in various eastern North Dakota locations wherever her mother found work as a schoolteacher. The family eventually settled in Nome, where Gail graduated from Nome High School in 1956. Shortly after graduation, she met the love of her life, Ordean Lindemann, at a dance in Fort Ransom. They married within a year and recently celebrated 65 years of marriage. They continued dancing throughout the years, frequenting the Eagles and the Elks Clubs on Saturday nights.
With four children in tow, Gail and Ordean moved the family to Bismarck in 1970 when Ordean became the Assistant Director of Secondary Education in the ND Department of Public Instruction. Wherever they resided, Gail made the house a home and completely devoted herself to her family. Music always filled the air, whether it was Gail playing the piano by ear, singing and dancing to her records, or listening to her children play their instruments. Her dedication to and support of her family were unwavering. As their children grew older, Gail entered the workforce, employing an excellent work ethic and taking great pride in a job well done. She worked at Sears for 10 years as a teletypist in the catalog sales department before becoming a data entry operator with the ND Department of Health’s Division of Vital Records.
Gail is survived by her husband, Ordean; children Mitchel Lindemann (Karen), Roberta Knetter (Mark), Derrick Lindemann (Tracy), and Natalie Bonshire (Todd); grandchildren Emily, Erica, and Elisa Lindemann, Jak Knetter, Rachel Bakken (Shawn), Shane Lindemann (Andrew), Jeremy Lindemann, Dominik Bonshire, Nikolai Bonshire; great-grandchildren Kailey Lindemann and Paige, Hallie, and Chase Bakken; her sisters Barbara Talman and Doris Peterson; and many special nieces and nephews.
Friends are welcome to join the family at a celebration of life on Thursday, August 18 at 11:00 a.m. at First Lutheran Church, 800 N. 7th Street, Bismarck. The family will receive friends an hour prior to the service. Interment will be in the afternoon at the North Dakota Veterans Cemetery in Mandan.
Memorial contributions may be made to First Lutheran Church, where Gail was a member since 1970.
The service will be live-streamed via the church website at www.firstlutheranchurchbismarck.com .