Ethel Kitterman Riddle

Ethel Elizabeth Kitterman Riddle July 18, 1914 December 10, 2015 Ethel Elizabeth Kitterman Riddle of Sioux Falls, South Dakota died at her daughters home in Rockland, Massachusetts on December 10, 2015 at the age of 101. Ethel was the wife for 63 years of the late Harold Riddle, and mother of sons Donald and his late wife Laverne of Denver CO; the late Robert and his wife Marlys; Daryl and his wife Dianne; and Jan and his wife Mickey of Sioux Falls; and daughter Patricia and her late husband Daniel Thompson of Rockland MA, with whom she lived since 2009. She was born and raised near Doland SD, the daughter of Albert and Harriet Elizabeth Hardacre Kitterman. Her siblings Clifford, Earl, Robert and Ruth, all died at birth or in infancy. Ethel attended rural schools in Spink County and Harrison Township, and graduated from Doland High School in 1932. When Ethel then enrolled at Northern State College in Aberdeen she was accompanied by two cousins, two friends, and her grandmother, Grandma Mary, who kept house and chaperoned the young ladies. She also attended Huron College and received a Bachelor of Science in Education from Augustana College in Sioux Falls in 1970 at the age of 55. While a student at Doland High School in 1929, Ethel was selected as a delegate to the National 4 - H Congress in Chicago from the Polly Prim 4 H Club. Her project studied the harmful effects on our bodies from wearing high heeled shoes, and, after the long train trip to Chicago, according to Ethels journal, the project was very well received by the judges. Ethel and Harold Riddle were married in 1935, and shared 63 happy years until Harolds death in 1998. The couple lived and farmed near Doland in Belle Plaine Township, and the family also travelled from Texas to Canada doing custom wheat combining. Ethel was active in the Doland Methodist Church as a Sunday School teacher for many years. The Riddle family moved to Sioux Falls in 1964, where Ethel spent 20 of her 32 years of teaching at Crippled Childrens Hospital and School in Sioux Falls, which became Childrens Care Hospital and School, and is now Life Scape. She was also a teacher at rural schools and Redfield State Hospital and School. At Childrens Care Ethel took great pleasure in teaching her first grade class to grow gardens from seed. Gardening was her lifelong hobby, and Ethels childhood pets, lambs Fanny and Flower, brought her joy. In 1924, when Ethel was ten, the Doland area became overrun with gophers and young Ethel became a gopher bounty hunter. She would lie on her belly next to a gopher hole around which she had placed a lasso. As a gopher raised its head out of the hole she pulled the lasso and killed the pest. Ethel earned $10 from the county for catching gophers, at ten cents a critter. She claimed her bounty by bringing 100 gopher tails to the county office. After retirement in 1984, Ethel and Harold regularly travelled to Florida, where they resided at Southern Pines Resort in Frostproof for many years in the winter months. Ethel was a lover of Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, crossword puzzles, Jumble puzzles, and especially card games. Her particular favorites were bridge and pinochle, and she played her last game of pinochle just two weeks before her death. She was well known for her repertoire of jokes and her annual Christmas letter. Ethel wrote poetry in her retirement years, and her poem Peace, was a favorite. Ethels greatest joy was her family, and at the time of her death she had 22 grandchildren, 37 great grandchildren, and 41 great great grandchildren, 2 great great great grandchildren, in addition to her five children. When asked the secret to her long and happy life, she would answer either happiness is healing, faith in God and prayer, facial yoga or a little peach Schnapps. She loved to make bread and donuts, fried chicken and pheasant, and home-made noodles. She was a member of Old South Union Church of South Weymouth, Massachusetts, where she greatly enjoyed attending church and bible study. As Ethels health declined, the Old South bible study group met on Pats deck and members spent Tuesdays with Ethel. A Celebration of Ethel Riddles very long and very happy life will be held on Saturday, May 7, at Sunnycrest United Methodist Church, 4801 W. 41st St., Sioux Falls, S.D. 57106 at 10:30 am. A graveside service will be held at the Prairie Valley Cemetery, Raymond, S.D. on Monday, May 9, at 1:00 pm. Honorary pallbearers will be her grandsons: Rodney W. Riddle, Mike Peterson, Rodney G. Riddle, Mark Riddle, Todd Riddle, Dan Petit, Brad Riddle and Brian Riddle In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her memory to LifeScape, 2501 W. 26th Street Sioux Falls, SD 57105.