Nora 'Odella' Baak

Nora Odella (Solheim) Baak, 100, of Sioux City died Sunday, June 15, 2014, at her home.
Services will be 10 a.m. Friday at the Redeemer Lutheran Church. The Rev. Russell Senstad will officiate. Burial will be in Trysil Bethesda Cemetery, Farwell, Minn. Visitation will be 4 to 8 p.m. today, with a prayer service at 7:30 p.m., at Morningside Chapel, Christy-Smith Funeral Home. Visitation will resume 9 a.m. until service time Friday at the church.
Odella was born on Sept. 26, 1913, in Valley City, N.D., the daughter of the Rev. Elling and Helene (Sogaarden) Solheim. She grew up in Eagle Bend, Minn., and graduated from Eagle Bend High School in 1932. She graduated from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., in 1936 with a BA in English and Latin. After college, Odella taught for three years in North Dakota, three years in South Dakota and four years in Minnesota, teaching English, Latin and music. She then taught at St. Olaf College in Northfield from 1946 to 1953.
She married Leonhard Baak on Aug. 8, 1953, in Eagle Bend, Minn. The couple then moved to Emporia, Kan., where they lived until 1960 when they moved to Sioux City. Odella taught library science and children’s literature at Morningside College for 22 years until she retired in 1982. She was the chairman of the Library Science Department and served as an associate professor at the college. Leonhard died on Jan. 17, 1998, in Sioux City.
Odella was a member of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Sioux City.
She is survived by her sister-in-law, Phyllis Solheim of Lakefield, Minn.; three nephews, Dr. William (Rebekah) Solheim of Minneapolis, Edward Solheim of Chrystal, Minn., and Donald Solheim of Minneapolis; and her grandnieces. She also informally adopted many freshmen at Morningside College.
She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; her brother, Arthur; and her sister, Evelyn Solheim Johnson.
Odella would like memorials to be given to Morningside College or Redeemer Lutheran Church.