Edward Johannes Prestegaard, 89, of Kalispell, went to be with his Lord in peace on January 31, 2015 at the Kalispell Health Center Hospice. A funeral service will be held Friday, February 6, at 1:00PM at Buffalo Hill Funeral Home to follow with a graveside service at Glacier Memorial Gardens.
Ed was born on February 7, 1925 to Johannes and Synnova in the small town of Ulvik, Norway in the Hardangerfjord. He grew up on the family apple orchard, and often hiked to a small family cabin in the mountains above the fjord. Ed was in the Norwegian military and earned a medal for international operations. He was the 8 th of 10 children and the only sibling to start an adventure in the U.S. At the age of 23, after the war, he was sponsored as an immigrant by his uncle Ivar from Malta, MT. He met his wife Patricia in Kodiak, AK at church where he wrote in his daily journal, “Today, I heard an angel sing”. They traveled to his wife Pat’s family in New Jersey and were married 58 years ago. Over the next 10 years, 5 children were born in Alaska, Norway, and Montana. Ed was a man of many talents and occupations, including ownership of a restaurant, apartments, and a creamery. He sold real estate and life insurance and was a builder of homes. Ed also started many Sons of Norway lodges across Montana.
Ed loved hunting and fishing with his sons. He was well known for his lutefisk dinners, making komla and lefse, and his church pancake breakfasts. He was a man of strong faith and enjoyed sharing his life with others. Ed was an honorable man and a true patriarch to his family.
Pat recalls that Ed often started projects from scratch to be used in this world and finished. Even through difficult times he was generous at heart, rich and grateful in the love of the Lord and the love of family. His treasures in heaven have surely been multiplied so that his joy and surprises will be found as he sees the result of his own life continue through the next generations. He was tried and true and knew how to pray, and his favorite motto was “Keep the Faith!”, because his spirit was touched by the eternal God.
He was a man who loved to travel and met his personal challenges with a sense of humor and bravely fought to the end when the Lord Jesus took him by the hand in perfect peace.
Ed is survived by his wife Patricia and their 5 children: June Juhnke (Ron), Glen Prestegaard (Carrie), Thor Prestegaard (Tracy), Sonja Merk (Vernon) and Christel Ritenour (Carlen) - his 12 grandchildren: Chad, Eric, Jacob, Nick, Erin, Amanda, Kaleb, Ashley, Colten, Maria, Judah, and Kirsten along with his 2 great-grandchildren: Everlee and Ezekiel.
Ed is preceded in death by his parents, 3 brothers, and 4 sisters.
A memorial fund has been set up for those who wish to make funeral donations please send to June Juhnke at 7233 Desert Ave Boise, ID 83709.