Anna Belle Mortenson

February 8, 1931– March 17, 2024

Funeral services for Anna Belle Mortenson, 93, of Little Eagle were held Thursday, March 21, 2024, at the Family Worship Center in Mobridge. Burial was at the McLaughlin Baptist Cemetery under the direction of Kesling Funeral Home of Mobridge. Anna Belle passed away Sunday, March 17, 2024, at her home.

Anna Belle was born on February 8, 1931, in Eagle Butte in the home of J.J. and Muzzy Johnson. Muzzy was a nurse (midwife) and delivered many babies in their home. Ten days later Anna Belle went with her parents, Albert and Luvisa (Pelter) Lopez to their home on the Cheyenne River, where they worked for the Diamond A Cattle Co.

She was soon riding horseback with her father and by age four she had her own pony and followed her father everywhere.

During the drought of the thirties, they had to move several times to find water and feed for the livestock. Always on a horse, riding and ranching was always a big part of her life.

Anna Belle attended various country schools using a horse for transportation. She loved reading and all learning was exciting. God’s great creation was an unending adventure. Plants, animals, sun, moon, stars, clouds, white and fluffy or dark and stormy, with lightning and thunder– all great subjects to wonder about and research. She attended high school in Colorado, Philip, and Eagle Butte, graduating in 1949 from Eagle Butte High School.

She attended the National School of Business in Rapid City and worked for Joe and Ardis Schneider in the office of their Ford dealership in Eagle Butte.

In 1953 Anna Belle married Sam Mortenson to become a ranch wife and mother of two sons, Jerry Lloyd, better known as J.J., and George Lee. Sam and Anna Belle celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary in November of 2023.

At the time of Sam and Anna Belle’s marriage Sam was in partnership with Anna Belle’s father, Albert, and in 1960 they bought a ranch on the Grand River. Sam and Anna Belle and their two sons moved there and made this their home for the next 63 years.

Anna Belle was always a working partner on the ranch as were their boys. From 1975 to 1988 Anna Belle also worked for South Dakota State University in their expanded Food and Nutrition program. She received several certificate of merit awards and in 1988 received from the state of South Dakota the Farm and Ranch Woman of the Year recognition award.

Sam and Anna Belle had always been active members in church and Sunday School. For many years they attended Messiah Church in rural Little Eagle. As the boys got into high school, they joined the First Baptist Church in McLaughlin and worked with several mission churches in Little Eagle and McLaughlin. In later years they started attending Family Worship Center in Mobridge and most recently were attending the First Baptist Church in Mobridge.

Anna Belle is survived by her husband of 70 years, Sam of Little Eagle; sons J.J. (Jackie) of Dupree and George (Susan) of Little Eagle; grandchildren: Riggin (Kimmie), Sonja (Steven) Willard, Payton Morrison, Selena Longbrake, Lee (Alysha), James (Holly), Amanda (Drew) Hermes, Matthew (Mica), and Sarah (Garth) Swenson; great-grandchildren Raniee, Roree, Jade (Delaney), TyAnn, Isaiah, Jones, Hunter (Kristen), Mia, Madalyn, Barrett, Anders, Quinn, Grady, Sienna, and Sutton; great-great-grandchild, Emery Sage; and numerous nieces and nephews.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Albert and Luvisa; brothers, Carl Kaiser and Lee Lopez; sister, Effie (Geno) Hunt and grandson, Jade Mortenson.

(Sam Mortenson’s address is Box 8, Little Eagle, SD 57639)