Fern Joan (Berry) Kupfer

Fern J. Kupfer, 87, Minot, ND, passed away on  Sunday, June 14, 2020 at her son’s home in Pinewood, MN. 

Fern Berry was born November 29, 1932, the daughter of Lyle H. and Helen (Spicher) Berry in Lonetree, ND.  Fern grew up and attended school there.    

She was living in Minot, ND, when she met Chet Kupfer and they married on June 23, 1952 at St. Leo the Great Catholic Church, Minot. At the time of Chet’s death on June 1, 2019 they had been married 66 years.

In 1953, their son, Jim was born.  They moved to Vermont shortly after Jim was born.  Then in 1957, they moved back to North Dakota.   In 1959, their daughter, Kelly was born, they lived in Odd’s Trailer Park and Des Lacs before settling in their home in Minot on Park Street in 1966. They resided there until 2011 when they moved to Dakota Terrace.

Fern loved her family and enjoyed taking care of her husband, children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.  They were #1 with her. She always enjoyed cooking and cleaning. You never left her home without a homemade meal or something else to eat.  She was a great baker and enjoyed making lefse with her family.  Fern’s family would always call her for her recipes. She was ever the homemaker, she took pride in a neat and tidy home. She was constantly cleaning or washing windows.

There was another side of her that when she made up her mind on something, nobody was going to challenge that.  She was funny, stubborn and sometimes a bit salty, but always had everyone’s best interest at heart.

Fern enjoyed going to the lake, gardening, going to Kelly and Ritchie’s for Sunday dinner and sitting in the sun on the deck.  She loved to play cards and visiting her children in Bemidji, MN. She wrote something in her diary every day for the last 25 years.  If someone wanted to know something, she would look it up in her diary.

The last few months of her life were spent with her son (Jim and Emily) at their lake home in northern Minnesota.    She enjoyed bird watching and Facetiming, talking about the years gone by to her family, especially her grandkids and great grandkids. 

Her loving family includes:  son, James “Jim” Kupfer and Emily Hardwig, Pinewood, MN; daughter, Kelly (Ritchie) Houge, Minot; grandchildren, Eric (Kristin) Kupfer, Kara (Ryan) Dosch, Glenda (Brock) Weppler, Michael (Jenna) Houge, and Matthew (Cayla) Houge; great-grandchildren, Haleigh Jacobson, Owen, Brook and Layla Dosch; Grady and Hayden Weppler; Brinna and Elin Kupfer; and Conner and Riley Houge; brother, Leslie “Jack” (Louise) Berry, Minot, ND, sister-in-law, Darlene Berry,  and several nieces, nephews and cousins.

Fern was preceded in death by her husband, Chet of 66 years,, Fern’s parents, Lyle and Helen (Spicher) Berry, siblings, Edward (Joan) Berry, Alvin (Delores) Berry, Robert Berry, and Joy (Donald) Hennessy; brother-in-law, Gil Kupfer and sister-in-law, Roberta Kupfer.

A Private Family Graveside Service at Des Lacs Cemetery, Des Lacs, ND will be held at a later time.

Memorials: In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to Sanford Hospice, Bemidji, MN.

Those wishing to sign the online register and share memories may access the online obituaries section at (www.thompsonlarson.com).

Thompson-Larson Funeral Home, Minot, ND

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Fern Joan (Berry) Kupfer, please visit our floral store.