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“Ernie” Miedema, age 80, of Valley City, ND, died Saturday, February 11th at the Sheyenne Care Center in Valley City.
A funeral service will be held at 2:00 PM on Wednesday, February 15th at Grace Free Lutheran Church in Valley City with Reverend Steve Mundfrom officiating.
Visitation will be held on Tuesday from 4:00 PM until 7:00 PM at the Lerud Schuldt Funeral Home and one hour before the service at the church on Wednesday afternoon.
A prayer service will be held at 7:00 PM Tuesday evening at the funeral home. Interment will be in Memory Gardens Cemetery near Valley City in the spring.
Ernest John Miedema, the son of Andrew and Ruth (Rohrbeck) Miedema, was born January 5, 1932 in Marion, ND. Ernie grew up and attended Greenland Grade School and graduated from Marion High School. After his graduation, Ernie worked for Northwestern Bell Telephone and also a short time for Montgomery Ward in Valley City. In 1951 he was united in marriage to Darlene Sortland in Litchville, ND. Shortly after their marriage, the couple began farming in Litchville. In the fall of 1957, he moved to Valley City where he became a partner and owner of Auction City Furniture. In 1960, he built a new building for the store on West Main in Valley City. He ran and operated the business for over 30 years. Ernie was very active with Civic Affairs, he served in the North Dakota House of Representatives for three terms and the Valley City Commission for one term. He was also an active board member of Norwest Bank, Mercy Hospital and the NDAAA. In 1980, Ernie began serving as the Director of Development for the Association of Free Lutheran Congregations in Plymouth, MN. Ernie and Darlene lived in Minneapolis until their retirement in 1997. After their retirement, they spent winters in Sarasota, FL and summers in Valley City. Ernie is survived by his wife, Darlene, Valley City, ND; one son, Darryl (Debby) Miedema, Sarasota, FL; one daughter, Gwen (Dwight) Schmidt, Jamestown, ND; five grandchildren, Heather (Mike) Thune, Bismarck, ND, Justin (Amy) Miedema, Sarasota, FL, Nick (Danielle) Schmidt, Jamestown, ND, Nicole (Chris) Pearson, Monticello, MN and Tyson (Mark) Quire, Bismarck, ND; four great-grandchildren, Nolan Schmidt, Kylar and Scarlett Pearson and Saige Quire; one daughter in law, Cathryn Schmidt, Bismarck, ND; one brother, Robert (Norma) Miedema, Litchville, ND; one sister, Maxine Muske, Grand Rapids, ND; one sister in law, Elaine Miedema, Valley City, ND; several nieces and nephews.
Ernie was preceded in death by his parents, one son Larry, one brother Stanley and one brother in law Herman Muske.