Eunice Hill-Thome

Mass of Christian Burial for Eunice Hill-Thome will be at 10:30 a.m., Tuesday, April 2nd, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Turton. Father Gregory Tschakert will officiate. Burial will follow in St. Bernard’s Cemetery in Redfield at 2:30 p.m., under the direction of Paetznick-Garness Funeral Chapel.  Services will be broadcast live on GDILIVE.COM

Visitation will be held on April 1st at the Paetznick-Garness Funeral Chapel in Groton from 5-7 p.m. The Rosary will begin at 5:00 p.m. followed by time to offer condolences. A wake service and time for memories will start at 6:30 p.m.

Eunice passed away March 24, 2024, at Avera Mother Joseph Manor in Aberdeen after a joyous weekend of connecting with family and friends.

Eunice Anna was born September 5, 1927, on the family farm by Conde, SD to Bernard and Mary (Bertsch) McPartland.  She was the fourth of seven children in her family. They lived on several farms in the Conde area. Growing up during the Depression had a big impact on her, and people enjoyed the stories of her youth. She liked to tell how her and her sisters tried to keep up with the latest fashions, but felt they were always “one stocking behind.”  She enjoyed doing the farm chores rather than working inside. 

Eunice attended the Geary Rural School and later graduated from Conde High School in 1945.  During her senior year, she worked as a switchboard operator for the telephone company to make enough money for her graduation announcements. Eunice continued her education at Northern Normal where she earned her teaching certificate in six weeks.  Eunice taught in various one-room schools in the area for four years. She enjoyed her students, many who were not much younger than she was, keeping in touch with some of them for the rest of her life.

Those were the days of barn dances, going to town on Saturday nights, and movies. One Sunday afternoon, she saw a photo of “the most handsome man she had ever seen” on someone’s piano. Little did she know that the young man’s mother would later have him give her a ride home from church.  She recalled the quiet fellow hardly said a word the whole drive, but this encounter would later lead to love. Leo Hill and Eunice were united in marriage on June 27, 1949. They made their home in Doland and were blessed with three children: Eugene, Marilyn, and Linda. They lived with Leo’s widowed mother, Rose, for the first decade of their marriage, helping take care of the house with her until her passing.

When her two oldest children started school, Eunice returned to the workforce at the Red Owl grocery store and later as a secretary at Northwestern Public Service for 24 years. Following Leo’s death in 1987, she was the coordinator for the Senior Citizen Center in Doland. During this time she also became more active with her grandchildren’s activities and with her friends, participating in “Sew & So’s” and a monthly Birthday Club.

Eunice was a faithful member of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Doland and later St. Joseph’s in Turton.   She was active in the Altar Society, CCD program, Catholic Daughters of America, and was a bookkeeper for the church in Doland for many years. Eunice loved taking care of others and will be fondly remembered for her generous, friendly nature.  She loved to cook and bake, never showing up empty handed to any gathering and continued clipping recipes to share long after she no longer had a kitchen of her own. She always made the best of life and looked out for others. Perhaps most of all she will be remembered for having a little song to sing for every occasion. An avid fan of her grandchildren, she attended many of their events and performances.  

Following a whirlwind courtship involving a lot of dancing, Eunice married Joseph Thome of Turton on October 31, 1998. They enjoyed their time together traveling, socializing, and watching the Twins until his death in 2002. From that time on, she followed the Minnesota Twins each season.

The last years of her life were happily spent in Aberdeen at the Avera Mother Joseph Manor Retirement Community. As a member of the Residents’ Advisory Board, she was instrumental in getting more Sunday breakfasts of biscuits and gravy. She stayed very busy joining in almost all of their activities and loved being part of their religious community. A fierce competitor, she rarely missed a Bingo game where she would only use cards with her lucky number 75.  

Celebrating her life is her family. Her son is Eugene (Cindy) Hill of Thornton, CO and their son Jonathan. Her oldest daughter is Marilyn (Randy) Mason of Watertown and their children Audrey (Matthew) Schuller and their children Will, Nate, Charlie, and Leo;  Ross (Melissa) Mason and their daughters Hope and Sydney; and Jocelyn (Kyle) Schroeder and their children Mason (Morgan), Andrew, James, and Zach.  Their youngest daughter  is Linda (Rollie) White of Aberdeen and their children Hillary (Jonathan) Goff and their children Adrianne, Genevieve, and Emelyn; Chelsea (Chris) Ashmore and their children Theo and Finnley; and Bridget (Terran) Chapin and their son Myles. Eunice is also survived by her brother, Robert (Mercedes) McPartland of Austin, TX, Ardis LaBrie of Conde and sister-in-law, Juanita McPartland of Stanwood, Washington.

Preceding her in death were her parents; both husbands; in-laws/siblings- infant Mary Ann McPartland, Matthew McPartland, Bernice & Larry Baker, Virgil LaBrie, Florian and Fern McPartland, Mary and Dobbie Hildebrandt, Jane and Maurice Hill, Ruth and Virgil Connor, Vincent and Evelyn Hill, Helyn and Russel Levsen, and Marjorie and Irvin Troske. 

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