Irene Essel

Irene Emma (Ringwald) Dressel, 85, of West Fargo, died December 25, 2011, at Sanford Palliative Care in Fargo, ND. Irene was born October 26, 1926, on her maternal grandparents’ homestead farm in the Pontiac Township near Enderlin, ND. Irene was the first-born child of Albert W. and Emma A. M. (Trapp) Ringwald, and the first-born grandchild of Henry and Emma (Pett) Trapp. Irene was married in 1946 and for a short time lived in Columbus, OH, where her son, Keith, was born. In 1973, Irene began her training as an addictions counselor at the Heartview Foundation in Mandan, ND. Her work in this profession took her to many parts of the country and concluded with her establishing a private practice in Grand Forks, ND. After retiring from her full time work, she continued part time with LSS of North Dakota. Irene firmly believed God put her on this earth to help those struggling with addiction and she delivered her counseling services with whole-hearted dedication and satisfaction. Her membership in St. Andrew Lutheran Church in West Fargo gave her much peace, as did her friendship with its pastor, Rev. Clark Jahnke. Irene is survived by her son, Keith (LeAnne) Dressel; granddaughters, Jennifer (Scott) Kujanson and Katie Dressel; great-granddaughters, Mikaela and Paige Kujanson, all of West Fargo, ND; sister, Marilyn (Howard) Sauerman; nieces, Laura (Bradford) Payne and Faith (Patrick) Cullerton; nephew, Andrew Sauerman; and nine great-nieces and nephews, all of Illinois. She was preceded in death by her parents and brother and sister in-law Donald and Barbara Ringwald. Funeral services will be held Thursday, December 29, 11:00AM at St. Andrew Lutheran Church in West Fargo, with a visitation being held one hour prior to the service at the church. Burial will follow at the Pontiac Cemetery, northeast of Enderlin, ND.