Caroline
Caroline Conrath
d. December 23, 2013
Caroline Conrath, 85, passed away on December 23, 2013, at Elm Crest Manor, New Salem.
A funeral service will be held at 2:00 pm on Saturday, December 28, 2013 at First Presbyterian Church, Mandan. Cremation has taken place and the family will greet friends one hour prior to the service at the church.
Caroline was born on January 1, 1928 to Friedrich “Fritz” Conrath and Anna (Krauth) Conrath. She had a wonderful childhood in Hebron, ND, and always considered it her hometown. In 1939, the family left for what was supposed to be a summer visit with family in Germany. However, World War II broke out just weeks after their arrival and the family was unable to get back to the United States until 1946. During that time, Caroline matured into a young woman and an enthusiastic artist. She remained close to her cousins and friends from Germany her entire life. While in Germany, she got her first paying job when she was hired as an interpreter for the U.S. Army.
Upon her return to the United States, she attended the Metropolitan Business College in Seattle, Washington. She was also a graduate of the Art Instruction School of Minneapolis. After graduation from business school, she returned to North Dakota and began working for the North Dakota Teacher’s Retirement Fund, where she was employed for 38 years.
Caroline’s first love was always art, especially painting. Besides painting, she enjoyed pen and ink drawing, sculpting, pottery, and woodcarving. She became especially noted for her commissioned acrylic on rock paintings. In 1965, she received a patent for a serving tray she invented. Caroline began showing her artwork publicly in 1954 and held her last exhibit in 2012. Her mother was also an artist and in 1971 they opened the Dakota Originals shop, which later became the Ann Conrath Art Gallery. In 2013, she fulfilled a lifelong dream of writing her family history.
She was a founding member of the Mandan Art Association and a member of the Bismarck Art & Galleries Association and Gallery 522. She was also a long-time member of the American Legion Auxiliary, the Central Dakota Humane Society, the Nature Conservancy, the Dakota Zoological Society, and First Presbyterian Church of Mandan.
She is survived by her sister-in-law, Fran Conrath; her nieces and nephews, Charles (Theresa) Conrath, Kathie (Stephen) Peightal, Susan Conrath, Carol (Kim) Katzbeck, and Donald Mayer (his special friend, Tracy); and several great-nieces and nephews.
Caroline was preceded in death by her parents; three siblings, Frederick Conrath, Theodore Conrath, and Mary Ann Mayer; two nieces, Diane Steinwald and Marilyn Bender; and a nephew, Tim Mayer.
Caroline loved all animals, but especially cats. In lieu of flowers a donation to the Central Dakota Humane Society is suggested.
A funeral service will be held at 2:00 pm on Saturday, December 28, 2013 at First Presbyterian Church, Mandan. Cremation has taken place and the family will greet friends one hour prior to the service at the church.
Caroline was born on January 1, 1928 to Friedrich “Fritz” Conrath and Anna (Krauth) Conrath. She had a wonderful childhood in Hebron, ND, and always considered it her hometown. In 1939, the family left for what was supposed to be a summer visit with family in Germany. However, World War II broke out just weeks after their arrival and the family was unable to get back to the United States until 1946. During that time, Caroline matured into a young woman and an enthusiastic artist. She remained close to her cousins and friends from Germany her entire life. While in Germany, she got her first paying job when she was hired as an interpreter for the U.S. Army.
Upon her return to the United States, she attended the Metropolitan Business College in Seattle, Washington. She was also a graduate of the Art Instruction School of Minneapolis. After graduation from business school, she returned to North Dakota and began working for the North Dakota Teacher’s Retirement Fund, where she was employed for 38 years.
Caroline’s first love was always art, especially painting. Besides painting, she enjoyed pen and ink drawing, sculpting, pottery, and woodcarving. She became especially noted for her commissioned acrylic on rock paintings. In 1965, she received a patent for a serving tray she invented. Caroline began showing her artwork publicly in 1954 and held her last exhibit in 2012. Her mother was also an artist and in 1971 they opened the Dakota Originals shop, which later became the Ann Conrath Art Gallery. In 2013, she fulfilled a lifelong dream of writing her family history.
She was a founding member of the Mandan Art Association and a member of the Bismarck Art & Galleries Association and Gallery 522. She was also a long-time member of the American Legion Auxiliary, the Central Dakota Humane Society, the Nature Conservancy, the Dakota Zoological Society, and First Presbyterian Church of Mandan.
She is survived by her sister-in-law, Fran Conrath; her nieces and nephews, Charles (Theresa) Conrath, Kathie (Stephen) Peightal, Susan Conrath, Carol (Kim) Katzbeck, and Donald Mayer (his special friend, Tracy); and several great-nieces and nephews.
Caroline was preceded in death by her parents; three siblings, Frederick Conrath, Theodore Conrath, and Mary Ann Mayer; two nieces, Diane Steinwald and Marilyn Bender; and a nephew, Tim Mayer.
Caroline loved all animals, but especially cats. In lieu of flowers a donation to the Central Dakota Humane Society is suggested.
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