Grace Wanttaja

Grace Wanttaja, age 90, died last week in Prior Lake, Minnesota. Services will be held at 10:00 AM Friday, November 3, at Church of Corpus Christi, 1919 N 2nd St., Bismarck.   Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the church. Burial will be in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Bismarck. Born in Bismarck and raised on a farm near Regan, her life spanned from mule-pulled plows to the age of Martian exploration. She received her early education in the one-room school houses of that era, transitioning to high schools in Regan and Wing before attending Valley City State College for her teaching degree. She then returned to Regan to help educate the next generation of North Dakotans. She married Willys Wanttaja, of Wing, in 1950 and moved to Riverdale as her husband worked on the Garrison Dam. After their two sons were born, the family moved to Fargo, where Willys began his long-term job with a heavy equipment company. In addition to bringing up two rambunctious boys, Grace was an avid bowler and performed extensive volunteer work at St. Anthony’s and Nativity Catholic churches. After both sons had graduated from NDSU with engineering degrees, she and her husband moved to Bismarck. Her volunteer work continued, both at Corpus Christi church and the North Dakota Heritage Center. Grace continued her education as well. After graduating from the University of Mary with a History degree, she transitioned from volunteer work at the Heritage Center to a full-time paid position. She and Willys retired in the late ‘90s, enjoying travel with a motor home, an Alaska cruise, and visiting their sons in Minneapolis and Seattle. They moved to Minneapolis in 2011. Still strong in her faith, Grace passed away quietly on the 26th of October. Survivors include Willys, her husband of 67 years; sons, Keith (Janel) and Ron (Lisa); grandchildren Todd, Lori, and Rosie; four great-grandchildren; her sister, Norma; and her sisters-in-law, Bernice and Gen. She was preceded in death by her brother, Leo; and great-granddaughter, Brita.