Rita Mae Perius

It is with a mix of sadness and joy that the Perius family announces the death of their matriarch, Rita Mae Perius, on April 21, 2019, at the age of 90 years. 

Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 12:30 pm Thursday, April 25, at Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, 519 Raymond St., Bismarck, with Fr. Paul Gardner officiating.

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

Visitation will be held from 4:00 pm – 8:00 pm Wednesday, April 24, at Parkway Funeral Service, 2330 Tyler Parkway, Bismarck, where a rosary/vigil service will begin at 6:30 pm.

Rita Mae Allen was born in Fairmount, ND, on October 7, 1928, to Rollie and Gertrude (Murphy) Allen. She graduated from Fairmount High School in 1946. In 1948, she moved to Bismarck to study nursing at St. Alexius Hospital. 

While having a cocktail with her aunt and uncle one fateful night at Kavaney’s Bar in Bismarck, she caught sight of her future husband and declared, "I'm going to marry that man." Rita officially met Marvin Perius outside the new St. Alexius addition, where he was working as a bricklayer. They married on November 19, 1949 at St. Anthony’s Catholic Church in Fairmount, North Dakota. 

Rita Mae was a homemaker in the highest sense of the word. She loved cooking and was at her best taking care of people. She opened her home to family, friends, and anyone in need of a meal, a bed, a laugh, or a hug. Rita also had a passion for words and she loved reading and working crossword puzzles. She was an avid viewer of "Jeopardy” and probably could have been a champion if she hadn’t been so busy taking care of all of us. 

Rita is survived by her children: Tim (Marvaline); Mark (Cindy);  Mary Ann (Duane) Tello-Pool; Shelly (Wade) Peterson; Cari (Cy) Timmons; Tracy (Dean) Heilman; Beth; Reid; and her grandchildren Shawn (Meagon), Dawn, Ryan (Ann) Warner, Jason (Mandy), Troy (Kristen) Warner, Tanya (Weston) Heustis, Kelsey (Darren) Job, Christina (Brent) Tello-Skjerseth, Deanna (Thad) Solhjem, Jeremy Heilman, Seth Heilman, Paden Peterson, and Sloane (Brian) Meuhler; one brother-in-law Tom (JoAnn); as well as 9 nieces, 10 nephews, and 13 great-grandkids. 

Rita was preceded in death by her parents Rollie and Gertrude, her husband Marvin, her brother Tom Allen, her mother-in-law Marion, her father-in-law Clarence, her brother-in-laws Allen and Percy, and her sisters-in-law, Loretta, Clem, Shirley Allen, Judi Banks, and Judy Perius.

The family would like to thank the staff at Maple View Memory Community and Augusta Place-A Prospera Community, and Sanford Hospice, for their tireless help over the last two years. A special thank you to daughter, Beth Perius, for making possible in-home care.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Rita Perius’s name to the North Dakota Alzheimer's Association or the North Dakota Long Term Care Foundation’s Nurses Scholarship Fund.