Melba Livingston

Melba Livingston, 99, Napoleon, formerly of Tuttle and Bismarck, died October 15, 2017, at Wishek Community Hospital. Services will be held at 10:00 am Saturday, October 21, at the Hurdsfield Community Center in Hurdsfield, ND, with Rev. Merle Hoots officiating. Burial will be at Pleasant Hill Cemetery, Hurdsfield. Visitation will be held from 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm Friday, October 20, at Eastgate Funeral Service, 2302 E. Divide Ave., Bismarck, where a prayer service will begin at 7:00 pm. Melba Mae Rhone was born on February 19, 1918, near Hurdsfield to Lee and Maude (Grover) Rhone. She was the seventh of ten children and the last to pass on. She graduated from Hurdsfield High School in 1936 and taught rural schools in the area for three years. She married Wendell Livingston on June 7, 1942, at the Gospel Chapel in Hurdsfield. They made their home, farmed, ranched, and raised their four children in the Livingston hills between Tuttle and Hurdsfield. Melba had a gentle soul and her greatest strength was her Lord and Savior. She will be deeply missed by her family that she loved so much. She was a member of the Bismarck Baptist Church. She enjoyed gardening, sewing/quilting, and cooking. She was a lifelong member of the North Kidder Farmerette Homemakers Club. In later years, she volunteered her services by embroidering dish towels for the Senior Center in Bismarck. She and Wendell enjoyed their years of retirement by spending their winters in Arizona. Wendell passed away on December 12, 1992. Melba resided in Bismarck until moving to the Napoleon Care Center in November of 2015. Melba is survived by her four children, Karen Fisher, Napoleon, Bruce (Diane Danielson) Livingston, Tuttle, Nona (Gerry) Inglis, Napoleon, Rod (Deb Scherbenske) Livingston, Tuttle; ten grandchildren, 21 great-grandchildren, and two great-great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband Wendell of 50 years; her parents; her sisters, Vivian and LaVonne; and seven brothers, Virgil, Doyle, Beryl, Clayton, Dale, Darryl, and Robert. Melba’s family wishes to thank the staffs of Valley View Assisted Living and Napoleon Care Center for their wonderful friendship and care.