Leon “Lee” Amdahl, 75, of Woonsocket, died Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025, at Avera Weskota Memorial Hospital. 

A celebration of life was held Monday, Feb. 24, at the 4-H building in Forestburg.

Arrangements were with Basham Funeral Service.

Leon “Lee” Merle Amdahl was born March 7, 1949, at Peabody Hospital in Webster. He was the fourth of nine children born to Dale Percy Amdahl and Jeanette Ruth (Hjellming) Amdahl. He attended school until the eighth grade, then he headed out into the world to help support his family, working various jobs throughout the state. It wasn’t until he joined the US Army in 1968 and served in Vietnam that he received his GED.

On May 10, 1975, he married Della Bessey, and to this union, one child was born. They built their life north of Woonsocket, raising hay, cattle and horses.

Lee could be counted on to show up and work hard and drive truck. It wasn’t until his later years that his knack for story telling truly evolved. “To make a long story short” was not in his vocabulary. He did what he loved up to the very end.

Lee is survived by his wife of 49 years, Della Amdahl; daughter, Bobbi Jo (Monty) Williams; four grandchildren; sister, Shelley (Arlo) Anderson; and many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

Lee was preceded in death by his parents, Dale and Ruth Amdahl; brothers, Baby Jerry, Gary, Les, Kevin, and Terry Amdahl; sisters, Sharon Snell and Linda Bauman; and parents-in-law, Lloyd and Wolina (Weaver) Bessey.

Louise Marie Alt, 74, passed away at her home in rural Forestburg surrounded by her family and friends on Feb. 18, 2025, after a six-year battle with breast cancer. 

A celebration of life is scheduled for Saturday, July 26, at her farm located at 23128 408th Ave., Forestburg. For any flowers or cards, please send them to the Country Pumper, 40855 SD-34, Forestburg, SD 57314.

Louise was born on July 25, 1950, in Salamanca, N.Y., to Mary and Anthony Kobinski. She graduated from Archbishop Walsh High School in Olean, N.Y., in 1968 and furthered her education at Trocaire College in Buffalo, N.Y., studying business and graduating in 1970.

In April of 1970, Louise married the late Kim Weishan. In 1970, the couple welcomed their daughter, Deanna. In 1981, Louise and Deanna moved to Mitchell for her job with Syncom. In the spring of 1982, she met Richard Alt. Louise and Richard were married on Sept. 19, 1983. In 1986, they welcomed their son, Adam. They purchased a farmstead in 1991, where she worked hard to fix it up and took pride in it to be a real show piece. Louise resided at this home until her death.

One of Louise’s greatest joys was traveling. She enjoyed going on cruises in the Caribbean and spending time at the beach sipping on some wine. The wiener dog races at Octoberfest in Deadwood was a yearly tradition. Louise was an avid dog lover and enjoyed taking her four furry friends, Sam, Ozzy, Leo, and Leah camping at various places around South Dakota. She also enjoyed attending Prairie Village in Madison and Kool Deadwood nights with her husband.

At the age of 64, in 2015, Louise pursued her and Richard’s entrepreneurial dreams with the purchase of the Country Pumper located in rural Forestburg.

In November of 2018, Louise was diagnosed with stage four metastatic breast cancer.  She did not let this news slow her down. She continued to live her life to the fullest.

Louise is survived by her husband, Richard Alt of Forestburg; children, Deanna Davis of Luverne, Minn., and Adam (Kristen) Alt of Forestburg; four grandchildren; brother, Mike (Veronica) Kobinski of Little Valley, N.Y.; and sisters, Judy (Doug) Jones of Titusville, Pa. and Patricia (Walter) Hupalo of Arlington, Va.

Louise was preceded in death by her parents, Mary and Anthony Kobinski, and sister, Marjorie Swift.