Gladys I. Rutherford, 83, of Fargo, ND, fought the good fight and finished the race Saturday afternoon, surrounded by her husband and all of her children.

Gladys, daughter of Peter and May Gilleshammer, was born at home October 8, 1923, near Drayton, ND. She was raised on the family farm with three brothers and three sisters. She attended a one room rural school and graduated from Grafton, ND High School in 1941. Gladys worked in St. Paul before enlisting in the U.S. Coast Guard Spars, serving as a recruiting specialist during World War II.

Gladys married James M. Rutherford on November 9, 1946 in Crookston, MN. They farmed for 24 years near Hillsboro, ND, where they raised their family.

She is survived by her husband of 60 years and their five children: Gary (JoAnn) of Pelican Rapids, Minnesota; Diane (Jim Weaver) of Billings, Montana; Pamela (Jim Wiedmann) of Glendale, Arizona; Peggy Briggs of Woodbury, Minnesota; and Charles (Susan) of Blaine, Minnesota; brothers Orvil, Allen and Glenn, and sister Thelma Anderson.

Gladys served on the Christian Board of Education and taught Sunday School for many years. She had a deep faith in Jesus. She leaves an amazing legacy in which her husband, five children and spouses, 19 grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren, and extended family always experienced her unconditional love and acceptance. She was the ultimate role model of a home-maker and life-teacher. Her family will greatly miss her until they are reunited with her in glory.

She is preceded in death by her parents and two sisters, Joyce Pede and Betty Jean Bjerke.
Memorials will be distributed by the family.

Funeral Service: Wednesday, October 3, 2007 at 11:00 at Liberty Lutheran Brethren Church, 1702 32nd Avenue South, Fargo.

Visitation: Tuesday, October 2, 2007 from 4:00-8:00 with a Prayer Service at 7:00 at Hanson-Runsvold Funeral Home 215 South 7th Street, Fargo.

Interment: Riverside Cemetery, Fargo.


Gladys Irene Gilleshammer
Gladys Gilleshammer was born October 8, 1923 in Teien Township, Kittson County, Minnesota, the daughter of Peter and May Gilleshammer. She was born in May's girlhood home and baptized at Skjeberg Lutheran Church in Tien Township. Peter farmed there until 1928, when the family moved to the Fred Moore farm northwest of Auburn, North Dakota.
Gladys attended elementary school in the Country District and for eight years. Eleanor Davis Assand was her only classmate. Those years were financially difficult for Peter to sustain his family, so Gladys lived for a time with her Aunt Hilma (nee Olson) and uncle Irvin Felt near Stephen, Minnesota. While she attended high school there, she helped babysit Hilma's children, Linda and Arden. She also played clarinet in the Stephen High School band. In 1940, after twelve years near Auburn, the family moved to the old Tufft Farm near Grafton, North Dakota. She graduated from high school in 1941.
After graduation, Gladys worked for Montgomery Ward's--first in Portland, Oregon and then in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Twin City Ordinance Plant was also an employer, where she worked making ammunition during World War Two. Soon after being employed there, she enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard Spars and received her training in Palm Beach, Florida. She served as a recruitor throughout World War Two, often sending her ration coupons home to her parents.
Jim and Gladys met after she returned from her War duties in 1944. They'd both gone to a dance on a Sunday evening at the Rod and Gun in Grand Forks. Jim asked Gladys to dance, and they were together the rest of the evening, dancing to songs like "Sunrise Serenade." He gave her a ride home that evening, and left her at her door with a goodnight kiss.
The first time that Jim became aware that Gladys was really interested in him was when she drove her father Peter's car, a blue 1941 Desoto sedan, out to the field to greet him. She stayed with Jim's family for for their evening meal, and before long, they began to date on a regular basis, going to dances, movies, and places like the Hamilton Fair. Jim was impressed with the "little voice" Gladys had, her beauty, her turned up nose, her good cooking ("the way she cut potatoes up into little squares), her dancing, and her winsome ways. Gladys loved Jim's wavy red hair, the way he used to sing to her, the fact that he could "fix anything", and his crooked smile. She also liked the way he dressed. They made a good looking couple, and by 1945 they were an "item".
Jim sold his 1937 Pontiac in order to get some extra cash, but after the potatoe crop was harvested in 1946, he
went to Minneapolis and bought a new 1946 Ford. Dealer price on the car was $1,350.00, but cars after the war were scarce, due to retooling of the factories, so he bought his new car on the black market for $1,950.00. When he returned from Minneapolis, he bought a new, brown, pin-stripe suit, a new pair of shoes, and he was ready to get married!
Gladys and Jim were married at 12 o'clock noon, Saturday, November 9, 1946 in Crookston, Minnesota. They were married in the parsonage of the Trinity Lutheran Church by Reverand Andrew A. Haugen. Gladys wore a brown suit with matching accessories, and a corsage made of talisman roses. Their attendants were her sister, Betty Jean, and Jim's friend, Olaf Aasand. Afterwards they had a dinner party in Grand Forks and then went on a short honeymoon to Winnipeg, where they stayed at the Royal Alexandra Hotel.
The newlyweds returned to Walsh County to live with Jim's family for a year. Their rooms were on the farmhouse's second floor, where the sleeping porch served as a bedroom, the hallway area as a kitchen, and the adjoining bedroom as their living area. Gary was born in 1947 while they lived upstairs and they had his crib in the bedroom with them. One day Gary fell down the staircase in his stroller, and Grandmother Hannah rocked him all night in her rocking chair to make sure he was all right.
After a year with Jim's parents, Jim and Gladys rented buildings on the old Wick farm near Grafton. Diane was born in 1948 and Pamela in 1950 at the Grafton hospital during this time. Jim found out about some good farmland in Traill County, and with the help of his brother, Joe, he bought some land there. In the Spring of 1950, Jim and Gladys moved to the old Frendburg farmstead east of Hillsboro, Traill County, North Dakota. That Spring the Goose River flooded over its banks, and it backed up into the coolie north of the home and surrounded the house.
Peggy Colleen was born in Hillsboro in 1951 and Charles Peter in 1952. That same year, an indoor bathroom was installed, and as Gladys said, they "got that wonderful running water." All of the children attended the Caledonia School until it was consolidated with the Hillsboro school system in the Fall of 1958. From that time on, they all attended the Hillsboro schools, and all graduated from high school there.
Through the years both Gladys and Jim were actively involved in their communities and busily raising their children. Jim was an assistant baseball coach when Gary played for the Caledonia Little League. He was also involved in the 4-H Clubs. He was a director of the Shelly, Minnesota Farmers Elevator, a member of the Trail County Red River Valley Potato Growers Association, and belonged to the fraternal organizations of the Elks and the Eagles.
Jim always loved cars and could tell the year and model of any car at a glance. He had a talent for singing and was called upon to sing in several community programs. He also loved to play the piano and organ, and although he was never trained technically, he often played by ear as he sang along. The children fondly remembered the many times their Dad would sit down to play, especially on Sunday mornings, as the rest of the family prepared to go to
church. He might sing "April Showers" or "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles"----songs he often sang. Of course, most of his time was spent working around the farm. He was very particular about keeping the farm buildings and yard in good shape, and he was a perfectionist when it came to his fields. He was known to have some of the straightest crop rows in the county!
Gladys' main role was as a mother to her five children, but she too was actively involved with her community and neighbors. She was a leader in the 4-H clubs, was on the Christian Board of Education of Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Hillsboro, and taught Sunday School for many years. She also was a charter member of the Willing Workers Homemakers Club for 25 years. She was known for her hospitality and for her wonderful cooking and baking. She also loved fishing, gardening, reading and doing crossword puzzles.
Jim and Gladys farmed for 25 years ten miles northeast of Hillsboro and then moved to Grand Forks in 1975 where they bought a townhouse. In 1978 they moved to the Oxbow Country Club, south of Fargo where they were amongst some of the original home owners. After moving from the farm, Jim share-cropped his land, and later rented it out after the buildings were sold.
Both Jim and Gladys took up the game of golf and enjoyed playing it often at the Oxbow Country Club. They owned two motor homes, spending time touring around the county, until they found their winter home in North Fort Myers, Florida near Gladys' brother Orvil in Florida. On July 14, 1996 Gladys and Jim celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary at the Oxbow Country Club with their five children, 13 grandchildren, and two great- grandchildren attending. Over 200 friends and family were at their reception.
They enjoyed many fun winters in Florida until they sold their home there in 2002. They remain active with their children and grandchildren and four great grandchildren.
When a freshman and sophomore in high school Gladys lived with her Aunt Hilma. When a senior she lived with Thelma and Merle. She was the only one to graduate from high school in her family. "I remember Dad bought me a clarinet. I was so thrilled. I faked it a little bit when playing in the band."
After she moved to Minnesota to work at Montgomery Ward and then to Oregon with Orville and Joy. She noted "I was such a patriot" that she enlisted. She went to Palm Beach, FL. She "wanted to do everything just right - I got a demerit for doing it too soon. G.I. Gilleshammer. "I always got a comment on that name tag!"
Her best "gal friend" was Harriett Miller. The enlisted together and worked together before in Minneapolis and New Brighton. She volunteered to be in the color guard and also put the flag up in the morning and took it down during taps at night.
Orville was wounded in training camp in Oregon (dynaite caps) while she was enlisted. "It was very sad."
Gladys finished boot camp and was picked to go to Yomen's school (what she wanted) for six more months in Florid. She graduated and was sent to San Francisco. When on a ferry ride, "all by self, all alone I thought of it as a brand new life and wondered what was going to happen to me." From there I went to Salt Lake City in recruiting. Got a panel truck and drove all over Utah - set up booths in police offices and gave entry tests to 18-yr-olds.
Orville transferred to Bushnell Hospital in Utah. C.B. and I went to the hospital to visit all the wounded. Most amazing was the skin grafting. Got attached to some.
Transferred back to Denver and back with Harriett. It was beautiful. Could see Pikes Peak in the distance from her office window. Then back to Salt Lake City where CB got married one weekend to a sailor. Together 58 yrs. now. CB was a devote Christian.
Transferred to San Francisco. On the way the whole train of service people got food poisoning. I was in the top birth and I couldn't get out of bed. It was awful - "sick both ways."
"I was discharged in San Francisco. I knew the war was over so spent days cutting confetti which was so thick and beautiful when we threw it out of the windows. Sailors were just wild and were everywhere. They stole my hat right off my head, and were pretty rowdy. We had to call the military police to take us home for our own protection."
Helen Mary and Bill Fredlund had an apartment. Harriett and I stayed there a week on the beach then went back to Minneapolis and then to Grafton in '45. Allie and Jim ran around together so I knew him. I danced with Jim then at a dance in Grand Forks and he gave me a ride home and I started going with him. I was 23 when we got married in November of '46.
(CB is still alive. Flora Bronstein in Seattle.)
1/2/05
djw G I Gilleshammer Memories