Hilda Thoreson 1874-1955

THORESON HANSON

Posted By: Connie Swearingen (email)
Date: 1/26/2010 at 21:10:10

28 July 1955

Mrs. T.S. Thoreson Called To Rest

Mrs. T. S. (Hulda) Thoreson, 80, one of the pioneers of the Soldier community, passed away last Friday at the home of her daughter and son-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Calvin Ward at Cedar Falls. She had not been in good health the past few months.

Mrs. Thoreson was active in the Lutheran Church in Soldier up until she moved to Cedar Falls. She was known for her friendly nature and was loved by everyone who knew her.

Funeral services were held at the Nazareth Lutheran church in Cedar Falls on Sunday and at the Soldier Lutheran Church (South) on Monday, July 25. Pastor Larson officiated at Cedar Falls and Pastor John C. Kilde gave the sermon at Soldier. Burial was in the Soldier Valley Cemetery under the direction of the Oldham Funeral Home.

Mrs. Hilda Hanson Thoreson, the daughter of John and Karen Hanson, was born in Urskog, Norway on November 22, 1874. In the spring of 1881 she came to this country with her parents, brothers and sisters and settled near Soldier, Iowa.

Mother Thoreson was baptized into the Christian Faith according to the Lutheran Church in Norway. Her covenant relationship with God in Christ was confirmed in the Lutheran Church in Soldier, Iowa.

On September 28, 1898 she was united in marriage with Theodore S. Thoreson. To this union three children were born; one daughter, Bernice now Mrs. Calvin Ward of Cedar Falls; two sons, Kenneth of Cedar Falls and Myron of Spirit Lake, Iowa.

Mother Thoreson slept away in God on July 22, 1955 at the age of 80 years and 8 months. Her husband preceded her in death.

During the later years of her life she lived with her daughter in Cedar Falls and was a faithful member of Nazareth Lutheran Church.

She is survived by her three children and four grandchildren and a sister, Mrs. Hannah Whittem of Minneapolis, Minn.

May God bless her memory in our midst.

(Here are some personal comments on the life of Mrs. Thoreson as seen by her pastor in Cedar Falls)

When a person is in need of a little inspiration it is always good to have friends to turn to who are able to serve you in this need. So often we find that some of our old people are the ones who can give a person a real left. Mrs. Thoreson was one of these old people. God had been good to her. She had nearly 81 years on this earth. But she was not 81 years old of spirit. She could always see the bright side of life. So we sat and talked in the privacy of her beautiful home. The conversation was around the things of the day—common friends in Soldier, her home town for many years, some of her experiences in Norway as a young girl and her early years in this country. It was interesting to hear her story. In all of our visiting together I never heard Mrs. Thoreson say an evil word about anyone. This is a real virtue.

While her conversation was well rounded it was easy to see that she enjoyed most talking about her church and her Christian faith. On Wednesday prior to her death I visited her in her home. Though she were quite ill there was still that smile and fine humor and as we shared the Word of God together I will never forget her words to me spoken through her pleasant Norwegian dialect, “Everything is alright between me and God.” Late Thursday evening at the hospital it was very apparent that she was a very sick lady. Yet she opened her eyes and together we repeated the 23rd Psalm and prayed. Her final words to her pastor were, “Come and see me anytime you are around.”

Death has separated us from this old child of God and yet we are joined together in the spirit. Her salvation was through faith in Christ alone. She did not depend upon her pleasing personality nor her good works. Christ was the all sufficient Savior.

May we trust in this Savior that when our hour comes to be called from this earth we may experience the victory over death that Mrs. Thoreson did.