Gilbert Kreitel

Funeral Services for Gilbert Lee Kreitel, 65 of Bismarck, formerly of Ekalaka are 2:00 p. m. , Monday, January 9, 2006 at Carter County High School in Ekalaka with Doug Stange officiating. Burial will follow in Beaver Lodge Cemetery in Ekalaka. Visitation will be 12:00 p. m. to 8:00 p. m. , Sunday, January 8, 2006 at Stevenson Funeral Home in Baker. Gilbert passed away Friday, January 6, 2006, at his home in Bismarck, North Dakota after a long courageous fight of progressive muscular atrophy. Gilbert Lee Kreitel was born May 10, 1940, the son and last child of George P. and Gladys (Pestka) Kreitel at the family home in Ekalaka. Gib was raised in Ekalaka by his mom and older siblings for the school year, returning to the ranch for the summer with his dad. He helped in the garden and hoeing in the shelter belt until he was ten when his father taught him to mow hay. Gib attended schools in Ekalaka graduating form the Carter County High School in 1958. That fall he started business school in Rapid City, South Dakota. During Christmas break, he decided to be a rancher instead and returned to the family ranch in the Chalk Buttes area. He ranched with his dad, George and brothers, Earl and Edward. Gilbert was married to Verna Chesmore on August 26, 1964 in Baker. To this union, two children were born, Karen and Dale. Together, Gib and Verna ranched and raised their family in the Chalk Buttes area. They made their home there for 38 years. After splitting the ranch partnership, Gib and his family moved to the prairie, building a new house, barn, corrals and a quonset with the help of his mother and father-in-law, Gene and Bertha Chesmore and friends. Many life-long friends were made through hunting on the ranch. Work on the ranch was accomplished as a family with Dale swathing and Verna and Karen baling for haying and everyone helping out for branding. His father-in-law Gene loved farming and ranching so he plowed new fields, sowed them and in turn, running the combine for harvest in the fall. Verna and Gib enjoyed working the ranch together as well as traveling overseas. Their trips included Yugolslavia, eight countries in Europe, Brazil and Kiev, Ukraine. In 2001, ill health and progressive muscle atrophy, a muscle wasting disease, forced Gib to retire and move to Bismarck where they have lived since. The onset of this condition was in 1998 and medical care was sought in Billings, Irvine, CA, Chicago, IL, Kiev, Ukraine, Atlanta, GA, Rochester, MN, Dallas, TX, Springfield, MO, Overland Park, KS, and Bismarck and Fargo, ND. Verna spent many hours researching, trying to find a cure. By February 2003, Gib was no longer able to walk and was confined to a wheelchair or bed. Even though he was in essence a quadriplegic, he always kept a good sense of humor. Throughout his life he was an avid weather charter, keeping records for many years. This was his hobby. He dearly loved his family, working livestock, tilling the soil and wildlife. Survivors include, his wife, Verna, Bismarck; a daughter, Karen (Barry) Cossette and daughter, Erica, Bismarck; a son, Dale (Tracy) Kreitel and their children, Jael and Aaron, Larimore,ND; a brother, Earl (Janice) Kreitel, Ekalaka; four sisters, Margaret Sherman, Forsyth, MT, Rose Marie Miller, Pierre, SD, Veronica Richards, Spearfish, SD and Mary (Tom) McCamish, Ekalaka; a sister-in-law, Nora Kreitel, Ekalaka. He was preceded in death by his parents, George and Gladys three brothers, Glenden & George; Jr. ?Buds? and Edward; a baby sister, Evelyn, and two nephews, Michael Kreitel and Robert Miller.


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Burial Date: January 9, 2006
Funeral Home Ekalaka, MT

Funeral: Monday, Carter County High School Gymnasium