Alwine Vetter

Alwine Vetter, age 88, of Bismarck, passed away on Thursday, October 8, 2020 at CHI St. Alexius with her husband and daughter by her side.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10 am on Tuesday, October 13, 2020 at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Bismarck.  Burial will be at 12:30 pm in St. Anthony's Cemetery in Linton. Please follow social distancing guidelines and protect each other by wearing a mask.

Visitation will be held from 5 to 7 pm on Monday, October 12, 2020 at Buehler-Larson Funeral Home, Mandan.

Alwine was born to Eva (Dockter) and August Gienger in Neudorf, Odessa, Ukraine, Russia on Leap Day, February 29, 1932.  She was smaller than a wine bottle.  The Russian government recorded her date of birth as March 1.  Between the family migration from Russia through Poland and into Germany, her birthdate got translated to May 1.  “May is a nice month, too,” she told her mother.

Alwine worked several jobs in Germany including as a waitress, nanny, shoemaker, and knitter.  In 1959, she and her family joined her two older sisters who had immigrated to North Dakota a few years ahead of them.  She lived with her parents on Anderson Street in Bismarck with a brief stint in American Falls, Idaho.  Alwine worked as a cook at the Baptist Home, walking to and from until she got her driver’s license and Chevy II.

On November 29, 1969 Alwine married Elias Vetter in Linton.  They adopted their daughter, Caroline, in 1974.  Moving to Underwood in the spring of 1978, they remained there until moving to Bismarck in 2007.  She had a green thumb, a golden spoon (“Kochlöffel”), a silver needle, and a beautiful heart. She was Eli’s “fishing buddy.”

Alwine is survived by her husband of 50 years, Elias; daughter, Caroline and son-in-law Tony Kozojed; grandson, Anton and granddaughter, Claire Alwine; sisters, Emma Boehm, Lilli (Melvin) Wohl, and Eva Heyne; sisters-in-law, Johanna Vetter, Isabelle (Valentine) Vetter, MaryElla Vetter, & Tillie Vetter; and many loving nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents; siblings, August (Alenda), Kathe (Emanuel) Loebs, Otto, Jacob, and Adam; Eddy Boehm and Marvin Heyne as well as many additional brothers-and sisters-in-law.