Geraldine L. Lee, age 98 years and 5 months, passed away on November 25, 2024 in Jamestown, ND, under the care of JRMC Hospice and the staff at Ave Maria SMP Health. 

Visitation will be held on Friday, December 6, 2024 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at Eddy Funeral Home, 621 1st Ave S, Jamestown, ND with a prayer service at 7:00 p.m. There will be a memorial service on Saturday, December 7, 2024 at First Congregational Church, 201 2nd St SE, also in Jamestown, at 11:00 a.m. with lunch afterwards. Interment of her ashes will take place in Sterling at a later date.

Geraldine was born at home June 25, 1926, to Emil W. and Zella Anna (Mueller) Lang, the 4th of 6 children.  She grew up on the family farm north of Sterling with her brothers Emil, Ernest “Duke”, and Donald, and her sisters Mildred and Rosella. Geraldine lived her entire life in North Dakota, except for a year spent with Rosella at Northwest Nazarene Academy in Idaho, where she finished the credits needed to earn her high school diploma. She married John F. (Jack) Lee on May 2, 1950, and they made their home in Dawson, where they raised their four daughters. He died in 1991 a few months before they would have celebrated their 41st anniversary. In 1998 Geraldine sold their house in Dawson and moved into an apartment across the street from Arby’s in Jamestown, where she made her final home and lived independently until shortly before her death.

Geraldine worked as a cook for the Steele-Dawson School District for many years, first in Dawson and later in Steele. After she retired and moved to Jamestown, Geraldine kept herself busy giving generously of her time and talent to the Anne Carlsen Center, the Salvation Army Thrift Store, Meals on Wheels, and Louis L’Amour Elementary School.

Geraldine was a woman of unwavering faith and deeply held religious conviction. She was baptized, confirmed and married in the Methodist Church in Sterling, of which her parents and several aunts and uncles were charter members. She and John became members of the Congregational Church in Dawson after their marriage, and she transferred her membership to First Congregational in Jamestown when she moved there. She was an active and engaged church member, both locally and at the conference level.

Geraldine loved bridge mix, books, and crossword puzzles. She read the newspaper daily, wore out several crossword puzzle dictionaries and was a frequent visitor to the public library. She and John raised a large garden every summer and she canned and froze enough vegetables to last the entire winter. She was an accomplished seamstress who tackled everything from dishtowels, quilts and upholstery to wedding dresses, coats and fashion doll clothes. She also excelled at embroidery, knitting and crocheting. Geraldine continued to cook and bake well into her 90s. She was particularly known for her delicious lefse, caramel rolls, kuchen and potato salad.

Geraldine is survived by her daughters and their families: Zella Ann (Thomas) Wong; Julianne (Glen) Nagel and John (Caroline); Sandra (John Muske) Lee-Muske, James (Mary) and Joshua; and Janis (Richard) Bartholomay, Rachel and Matthew; one sister-in-law, Jane Lang, and numerous extended family members, including 19 nieces and nephews.