Muriel Jean Lippert

Muriel Jean Lippert, Bismarck, went home to be with God on June 25, 2020.  A funeral service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Friday, July 3, at Trinity Lutheran Church, Bismarck, with Rev. Lisa Ahlness and Rev. Lee Herberg presiding. The link to the service livestream will be located on Trinity Lutheran’s website: wwww.trinitybismarck.com.

Visitation will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, July 2, at Parkway Funeral Service, 2330 Tyler Pkwy, Bismarck. A prayer service will begin at 7 p.m.

Burial will be held following the service at Highland Home Cemetery, Jamestown.

Muriel was born on February 10, 1960 in Elmhurst, IL to Wilbur and Grace (Winge) Lippert. God claimed her as His child on Easter Sunday, April 17, 1960 when she was baptized at Epiphany Evangelical Lutheran Church in Elmhurst.  Her parents faithfully brought her to God’s house.  They, along with the people of Epiphany, taught her God’s ways.  She was confirmed on May 19, 1974 at Epiphany Lutheran. 

She attended Roosevelt Elementary School, Sandburg Junior High School and York Community High School, all in Elmhurst, IL, graduating in 1978.  Muriel started playing violin in fourth grade and switched to viola in ninth grade.  Playing in the orchestra, singing in the church choir and sewing were activities that Muriel enjoyed greatly.  She continued her education at Augustana College in Rock Island, IL, majoring in music and religion and graduating in 1982.  During her college years she started a life-long involvement with the issue of world hunger, encouraging people to give money to the church’s World Hunger Appeal.  She spent six months during her college years in Washington, DC, working at a homeless shelter and a food and clothing distribution center through the Lutheran Volunteer Corps based at Luther Place Memorial Church.  After she graduated from college, she worked for one year through the Philips Neighborhood Lutheran Volunteers in Minneapolis, MN.  Her assignment included work in an after-school program and a crisis nursery. 

Muriel returned to Illinois to pursue a Master of Divinity degree at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago leading to ordination into the ministry of word and sacrament of the ELCA.  She served her internship year at First Lutheran Church in Minot, ND.  She received her Master of Divinity degree from LSTC on June 6, 1987.  Muriel was ordained on Pentecost, June 7, 1987, at Epiphany Lutheran in Elmhurst, IL.  She received a call to serve as pastor of Bethlehem Lutheran in Wing, ND where she served faithfully from 1987 until 2008.  The partnership in ministry that they shared was a true treasure. 

On March 24, 1989 (Good Friday) Emma Bernice was born and filled Muriel’s heart with joy.  On November 1, 1992 (All Saint’s Day) Eric Paul was born and brought further blessings to Muriel’s life.  Her greatest joy came from nurturing her children’s growth.  It was a tremendous privilege and honor to be their mother.

Serving in a church-wide capacity has been an ongoing part of Muriel’s life of ministry.  She focused on meeting the needs of the world around her, being a neighbor to those both near and far.  Over the years she served on a variety of synod committees, including as Synod Assembly Manager.  She also assisted God in the community by serving on various committees and boards, including the Lutheran Brotherhood Board, Williams County Social Services Board, Camp of the Cross Board, and Wilton School Board.  She participated in two Lutheran World Relief Study Trips to the Philippines and Western Africa. 

From 2009 to 2015, she served as pastor at Shepherd of the Prairie Parish in Williston, ND.  In response to the tremendous needs in the community of Williston, she led a team of people to found Little Lambs Childcare, Inc.  She also worked with others in the community across denominational lines to start Banquet West, a weekly feeding ministry.  She was awarded the 2015 Community Achievement Entrepreneur of the Year Award.  In 2016, Muriel left the ministry to become the building manager at a newly constructed multi-use building in downtown Williston, built by the Renaissance Companies.

Muriel shared her musical talents in various ways.  She played viola with the Bismarck-Mandan Symphony for over twenty years and with the Minot Symphony Orchestra for over seven years.  Some of her favorite memories include concerts she played and lifelong friends she has made through the symphony.  She also had a beautiful soprano voice and shared her talents in multiple ways, including singing at worship services and performing in the Messiah chorus alongside her father.

Muriel’s faith in God was very evident in the last six months while she coped with her cancer diagnosis.  She handled it with grace and dignity, something that is an inspiration to us all.  May she find comfort and peace in Heaven.

Muriel is survived by her children, Emma and Michael Berg (Wilton, ND), and Eric Schauer, Springdale, AR, her father Wilbur Lippert (Bismarck, ND), her sister Nancy and brother-in law John Walsh (Palm Coast, FL), her uncle Royce Winge (Ames, IA), and her nieces and nephews Lauren and Byron Lewis (West Melbourne, FL), Alex Walsh and Christine Ghilain (Randolph, NJ), and Maureen Walsh (Palm Coast, FL). 

She is preceded in death by her mother Grace Lippert, her aunts and uncles Jim and Bernice Lippert, Herbert Winge, Alice Winge, and Ralph and Jane Winge, and her grandparents Richard and Emma Lippert and Albert and Mabel Winge. 

Memorials can be sent to the ELCA World Hunger Appeal or Lutheran World Relief to continue Muriel’s mission of helping others. Memorials may also be sent to the Winge-Lippert Scholarship Funds established at Augustana College, Rock Island, IL, and Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.