Nick O'Brien

Francis Nicholas “Nick” O’Brien, 80, of Bismarck, died April 13, 2011 at Medcenter One Hospital, Bismarck. Mass of Christian Burial will be at 11:30 AM, Tuesday, April 19, 2011 at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, Bismarck, with Reverend John Guthrie as celebrant. Burial will be in the North Dakota Veterans Cemetery with military honors provided by the Bismarck VFW Post 1326. Visitation will be from 5-8 PM Monday, April 18, 2011 at the Buehler-Larson Funeral Home in Mandan where a rosary will be said at 7:00 PM followed by a parish vigil. Visitation will continue one hour prior to the mass at the church on Tuesday. Francis Nicholas O’Brien was born on April 1, 1931 in Eden Valley Township, Minnesota, the son of James Nicholas and Dorothy Katherine (Kottke) O’Brien. Nick was raised on the O’Brien farm in Paynesville, Minnesota. He graduated from Eden Valley High School in 1949. Nick enlisted in the U. S. Air Force in 1951, retiring in 1973. He married Virginia Zearley on March 19, 1963 in Rapid City, South Dakota. He served in Korea and Vietnam. He was a disabled veteran. Nick was a lifetime member of the VFW, the American Legion, and the Air Force Sergeants Assoc.
Following his discharge from the Air Force, Nick worked for the ND Dept. of Corrections for a time before beginning his employment with the BNSF in 1974, retiring in 1993. Nick loved hunting, fishing, bowling and playing cards with family and friends. He also had a special place in his heart for his dogs and cats.
Nick is survived by his wife, Virginia of Bismarck; his son Michael (Barb ) O’Brien of Apache Junction, Arizona; his daughters, Suzanne (Jeff) Gross, Erin (Freddy) Wooten and Yolanda “YoYo” (Todd) Wahl, all of Bismarck; his grandchildren, Michael, Jason and Adam Stringer, Mandy Koch and Jennifer and Joshua Wahl; great-grandchildren, Kaitlyn Orman, Dominic O’Brien, and Noah and Anime Koch; his sister Margaret Hurd of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota; his brother Clarence (Lorraine) O’Brien of Richmond, Minnesota; many nieces and nephews; and many special friends including, Bob, Sherry and John Derwin, Dave and Janet Nelson and family, Pam and Kent Redland and Joy and LeRoy Krein.
Nick was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Joseph, Lawrence, and James O’Brien; sisters Lucille Dold and Dorothy Miller; his son-in-law, Mike Stringer; and grandson, Jordan Wahl.