Betty Gabriel

Betty (Deisz) Gabriel, 91, passed away peacefully on Monday, Nov. 30, 2020 at a Mandan care facility. Mass of Christian burial will be held 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 5 at Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, 519 Raymond St., Bismarck.  Masks are required and please observe social distancing. A service livestream will be available at the following link: https://venue.streamspot.com/event/MjQzMDMxNw==

Visitation will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday at Eastgate Funeral Service, 2302 E Divide Ave, Bismarck, with a vigil/prayer service beginning at 7 p.m.  Masks are required and please observe social distancing. A livestream of the vigil/prayer service will be available on the funeral home’s website.

Burial will be held at St. Mary’s Cemetery, Bismarck.

Betty was born on Feb. 10, 1929 in rural Linton to Lorenz and Anna Deisz.  She attended school in the Linton area through the eighth grade. She would later attend Beauty School in Bismarck and for a time worked at the St. Alexius Hospital. At a very young age, Betty became a single parent of her three children and first began working cleaning homes for people as well as cleaning the offices for the Nash Finch Company in Bismarck in order to support her family. She eventually took a full time job with Nash Finch at first working in the warehouse and later in the office. When Nash Finch closed in Bismarck, Betty set out to further her education, first to obtain her High School GED and then on to Bismarck Junior College where she obtained her Clerical Certificate. This led to a job at the Headquarters for the North Dakota National Guard at Fraine Barracks in Bismarck where she retired from in 1994.

Betty was an excellent cook and baker.  Her homemade buns and banana bread were her specialty and everyone looked forward to being recipients of these treats.  Betty loved to sew and made clothing for herself, her children and other family members. She would later enjoy making quilts for her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren, which she was still doing in recent years while residing at an Assisted Living Facility in Bismarck. She enjoyed spending time with her grandchildren; and later on her eyes would light up when she would see her great-grandchildren.  In better (earlier) times, Betty loved going to the Prairie Knights Casino where she enjoyed playing the nickel machines. Playing Bingo, wherever she resided, would later become one of her favorite past times and she was always happy when she would win quarters, dimes or whatever the winnings were. 

Betty is survived by her children, Gary (Karla) Gabriel, Kathy (Doug) Balliet and Charlene Magstadt; grandchildren, Donnie (Amy) Balliet, Derek Gabriel, Dusty (Toni) Balliet and Andrea (Kohl) Stewart; eight great-grandchildren; sisters, Katie Hager, Mary (Ray) Wagner; brother, Mike (Marcella) Deisz; sister-in-law, Freda Deisz; and many nieces and nephews.

She was greeted in heaven by her parents, Lorenz and Anna; siblings, George Deisz, Elizabeth Deisz, Tilly (Wilbert) Rath and Matt (Rose) Deisz; brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Angie Deisz and Joe Hager.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to donor’s choice or to the Open Your Heart Charity, P.O. Box 753, Bismarck, ND 58502.