Olive Ryder

Olive Katherine "Lynne" Ryder died March 6, 2019, at Crescent Health Care at the age of 101. She was born in 1917 near Hamberg, North Dakota, to John Alfred and Karine Kristianson Lynne and was baptized and confirmed in Viking Lutheran Church. Olive attended elementary school in the Lynne School, which was built on land her family donated, and went to high school in Maddock, North Dakota. She received her diploma in nursing from the Bismarck Hospital School of Nursing in 1941. During World War II, Olive was hired by the federal government to care for wounded soldiers in hospitals on the West Coast. During this time, she met John M. Ryder, MD. Dr. Ryder spent his career working as a doctor for the Department of Interior on various tribal lands. The couple was married in Wolf Point, Montana, and lived for a while in Poplar, Montana, on the Fort Peck Reservation. They subsequently moved to Tacoma, then to Nespelem on the Colville Reservation, and finally to Wellpinit on the Spokane Reservation. Olive assisted her husband in his medical work as well as raising a family. From there, her husband retired, and the family moved to Yakima where Olive returned to work in nursing, spending many years at Renaissance Nursing Home (now Willow Springs), and retiring finally at the age of 78. Olive was a lifetime member of the Washington State Nurses Association and the American Nurses Association and a member of Central Lutheran Church in Yakima. She enjoyed flowers and gardening, collecting dolls, and taking care of others throughout her nursing career. She spent a lot of time planning family parties because she loved seeing everyone together. She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; sisters Hazel Hagen, Margit Weiss, and Hulda Faleide; brother, Gordon Lynne; and a daughter, Sarah McFadden. She is survived by three children: Thelma Ryder (Don Wherry), John "Jack" Ryder (Pamela Caton), and James Ryder; three grandchildren: Shelley Ryder (Darrell Wynn), Sean Ryder (Oxana), and Alisha McFadden (Terry Malone); four great-grandchildren: Erika Belles, Hannah Belles (Jamin Frank), Dylan Ryder, and Katie Malone; five great-great-grandchildren: Brock Escalante, Owen and Emma Fischer, Elsie Frank, and Madison Ryder; and many nieces and nephews. Memorials can be sent to Viking Lutheran Church in Maddock: Janelle Hvinden, Church Sexton, 3251 51st Ave. NE, Maddock, ND 58348. The family would like to thank Julie, Michelle, Kim, Christina and the rest of the nurses, caregivers and staff at Crescent Health Care for their help and kindness to our mother and to us. Funeral Service will be 9am, Saturday, March 16, 2019 at Valley Hills Funeral Home Chapel (2600 Business Lane, Yakima) with burial to follow at Terrace Heights Memorial Park. To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Olive Ryder, please visit our flower store.