Ray and Marie Schmidt

Ray was born on the plains of North Dakota to George and Barbara Schmidton June 17, 1922. His early years were spent on the family farm near Fayette, ND , and he remained a farmer at heart for the rest of his life. Due to economic conditions, his formal education ended with his 8th-grade year. He nonetheless remained an avid learner throughout his life and was self-taught in many areas. He often said he was an honor graduate of the finest university available: The School of Hard Knocks. In his youth, he served in the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) helping to build Roosevelt National Park in Western North Dakota. Ray met his wife at the age of 14 in a friendly showdown in which she became a regional spelling-bee champion. She so impressed him at the bee that he tracked her down years later by buying a newspaper ad seeking her whereabouts. They married June 4, 1946, and began a faithful 66-year journey through richer, poorer, sickness, and health. Before moving to Montana in 1964, to own and operate Dairy Queens and other restaurants, Ray worked as a mail carrier and a master carpenter. In Miles City, he belonged to the Knights of Columbus and was a longtime member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Miles City. Ray was an accomplished, self-taught accordionist who played by ear. Music was one of the great joys of his life. He played his first gig at age 10 and played with a number of bands thereafter. He continued to play for his own enjoyment throughout his life. After suffering a stroke this past Christmas morning, Ray had difficulty talking, reading, and writing, but he could still play the accordion. An accomplished woodcraftsman, Ray was often found in his carpenter’s apron, liberally sprinkled with sawdust, whistling away as he measured, sawed and nailed. He was a friendly man of great wit and humor and a natural storyteller.


Marie was the eldest daughter of Barbara and Frank Commes. She was born April 12, 1923, in Richardton, ND. In her youth, she attended Assumption Abbey in Richardton, and was a devout Catholic her entire life. Marie was good at everything she set her mind to. She was the first person in her family to attend college, graduated with a teaching degree, and taught at a number of country schools in Western North Dakota. She was such a gifted, exceptional teacher that she was assigned to the schools with the “toughest customers” (kids), for which she was paid a premium (hazard pay, of sorts). Marie immediately put all of them on the path to learning and good citizenship. Marie was also good at cooking, baking, sewing, gardening, crocheting, quilting, and—last but not least—raising her and Ray’s children. She and Ray eventually had eight of them join them for their journey. Although Ray had gone to the “School of Hard Knocks,” she was determined they send all of their children to college, which they did. Marie worked tirelessly by Ray’s side farming and in the restaurant business. She was also a member of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church. In her retirement, she was a member of the parish’s altar society. She looked after neighbors when they were elderly and cared for her mother in her later years.


Graveside services for Ray and Marie Schmidt of Miles City, MT, formerly of Fayette and Richardton, will be held at 2:00 p. m. , Saturday, June 15, 2013 at St. Edward’s Catholic Cemetery near Fayette, ND with Msgr. Patrick Schumacher celebrating.


Click to View Program (PDF)


Burial Date: June 15, 2013
Funeral Home Dickinson, ND

Graveside Service: Saturday: St. Edward’s Catholic Cemetery, Fayette, ND