Louise Helen Bridgett

Louise Bridgett, age 104, passed into the lord's hands peacefully surrounded by family in her home in Brandon, SD, on February 6, 2025. Funeral services will be held Friday, February 14, 2025, at 1:00 pm at Christy Smith Funeral Home, Morningside Chapel (1801 Morningside Ave, Sioux City IA). Visitation will be at 12:00 pm before the service. 

Louise was born in Jeffers, MN, Dale Township, Cottonwood County to Charles and Katie (Helder) Buhman on August 30, 1920. She was baptized into the Catholic Church in Windom, MN, on October 10, 1920. Her family moved to Park Rapids, MN, where they did dairy farming. They later moved to Eagle Butte where she attended school at the Catholic Church. When she was a teenager, the family bought a farm near Smithland, IA, where she lived until she was 18 years old. She then set out on her own. She lived in Ft. Collins, CO, and worked at the laundromat on the Air Base for a couple of years. Then she traveled to Florida to live for a year and worked on the Air Base there. She finally returned home and worked for a while at the Cusack Bauman laundry in Sioux City, IA. After that, she got a job at an upholstery shop where she met her future husband, Louis Bridgett. They were married on August 6, 1945. They honeymooned at Spirit Lake, IA. Their first house was on Wall Street in Sioux City. They had four children: Harry, Catherine, Carlene, and Shirley. They lived there for a few years before buying their family home at 1703 Berry St. in Sioux City, where they both remained until the death of Louis in 1990. She lived with her youngest daughter, Shirley, for a few years before moving back to Sioux City to an apartment. In 2016, Louise moved to Minnesota to live with her oldest daughter, Catherine. She lived in New Brighton and Brooklyn Center. In 2019, Louise and her family moved back to South Dakota to live in Sioux Falls, and then to Brandon in 2024. Louise loved to travel! Her vacations with Catherine took her to historical sites in Minnesota, South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri (where she visited her grandson, Jonnie, and family.) She also got to see the total eclipse while she was there! One of her favorite vacations was to the Black Hills where she made friends with the actors in Deadwood. The lady who played Calamity Jane was her favorite. She was called upon and was made part of one of the performances by Calamity Jane. She also visited all the Laura Ingalls Wilder home sites and outdoor plays. Louise was an avid reader of religious and mystery books. Her favorite author, Lorena McCourtney, sent her an autographed book from her personal collection. 

Her smile, good humor, and loving ways helped her make good friends everywhere she went. She was a lifelong member of the Sioux City senior center where she learned wood carving and involved herself in the creative writing classes as well as the German language class. Along with all of that, she made beautiful dolls for everyone she met. Her wood carvings and dolls were given away without asking for anything in return. Louise kept her mind busy by studying history, math books, and reading maps. She was always sending for information from different places. She kept genealogy notes, wrote people she didn’t know, and exchanged photos and information about family. Louise also loved word search puzzles, drawing, and coloring. 

Horses were her favorite animal. She made a lot of hand-carved horses out of wood. When she lived in Eagle Butte, SD, she would ride bareback across the prairie. At age 82, after not having ridden since she was 16 years old, she called Stars (Special Troopers Adaptive Riding School) in Sioux City. On November 2, 2003, at 2:00 pm she finally met her horse Matlock. A big gentle gray horse with dark patches and got her chance to ride again. 

Louise was preceded in death by her husband, Louis Bridgett; infant daughter, Carlene Diane Bridgett; parents, Charlie and Katie Buhman; her sister Nelly Newman; a baby sister who was born and passed in Park Rapids, MN; a grandson, William Albert Larsen; and son, Harry Eldon Bridgett. Her survivors include her daughter, Catherine Larsen and her children, Yvette (Bart) Briley, Lori (Mike) Mullen, Jonnie (Crystal) Larsen, Chad Larsen, and Mary McIndoo; her other daughter, Shirley Simmons and her children, Travis Simmons, Betheen Simmons, and Christopher Simmons; and many great and great-great-grandchildren. 

Louise’s kindness, strength, and adventurous spirit touched the lives of all who knew her. She taught us the importance of love, faith, and perseverance, leaving behind cherished memories that will live on in our hearts. As we say goodbye, we find comfort in knowing she is reunited with her beloved Louis, riding across the heavens as she once did on the open prairie. Her journey continues, and her love remains with us always.

Her family considers themselves blessed to have had so many wonderful years with her. She was not only a daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great-grandmother, but also a friend, mentor, and storyteller. Her love knew no bounds, and her generosity will never be forgotten.

As she is laid to rest on Valentine’s Day, we know that her long-awaited reunion with Louis is finally here. May they dance among the stars and watch over us until we meet again.