Linda Kosse, born August 9, 1948, Valley City, ND, Died, April 22, 2025, Valley City, ND

Linda Lou (Fiske) Kosse, 76, passed away peacefully on April 22, 2025, in her Valley City home near her beloved husband of almost 57 years, Don. Theirs was a lifelong love story that began when she pulled him into a coat closet in high school. She graduated from Tower City High School in 1966 and moved to Seattle, Wash., where she began work at Boeing. They married May 7, 1968, and she moved to join him in Long Beach, Calif., where he was stationed in the Navy.

They returned to North Dakota in 1970 with a new baby, a parakeet and a German Shepherd in their 1962 Impala SuperSport. It was important for children to know their grandparents, she said. They put down roots and raised their two daughters, Heather and Amber, in Jamestown and Valley City.

Linda was known for her generous spirit, unbreakable poker face in pinochle, gifted quilt-making and her legendary “Linda buns.” Her dinner rolls were the first thing to disappear from any holiday dinner table. (Her husband claims to be able to turn out acceptable reproductions … the jury is still out.) She played a wicked game of horseshoes and loved to fish on the lake with family and friends.

She and her husband worked side by side at Culligan Water Conditioning in Valley City for many years beginning in 1970. They purchased the company in 1980 and retired in 2005, when they began to spend their winters in Texas.

Grandmother to Ciara (Leick) Becker and John David (J.D.) Brouns and great-grandmother to Arya and Brexten Becker, her family was always first and foremost and holidays were special times with games, fun and great food.

Linda is survived by her husband, Donovan; daughters, Heather Kosse, Alexandria, Minn.; Amber Havard, Valley City, N.D.; granddaughter Ciara (Landon) Becker, Jamestown, N.D.; grandson John David (J.D.) Brouns, Alexandria, Minn.; and sisters Hazel Smith, Shelton, Wash.; and Jill (John) Statema, Valley City, N.D.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Myrtle (Zaun) and George Fiske; sisters Georgena (Duane) Gray and Ramona (Roger) Erickson; and brother, Ricky (Nancy) Fiske.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you please make a donation to your favorite charity.

Visitation will be held at Oliver-Nathan Funeral Chapel, Valley City on Tuesday, April 29 from 5 pm to 7 pm, with a prayer service at 7 pm. The funeral Mass will be Wednesday, April 30 at 10:30 a.m. at St. Catherine
Catholic Church in Valley City, N.D. Burial will be at Hillside Cemetery, Valley City.