Julia Kordon, age 89, passed away from cancer on Sunday, July 12, 2015 at St. Benedict’s Health Center in Dickinson.
Julia Evoniuk was born on January 19, 1926 near Gorham. She was the 10th of 11 children born of Anna (Elko) and John Evoniuk (an additional 4 died in infancy). She was only 14 when her mother passed away. By then, the sons were away from home, so the girls worked the farm. Julia and her sister Katie herded sheep, roaming the countryside during the long summer days. She graduated from Belfield High School and attended 6 weeks of training to become a teacher. She taught in the Gorham area for one year and then moved to Denver, Colorado where her brother Al lived. She landed a job at Gates Rubber Company, working a tire assembly line. After a few years, her father needed help back home so she returned to Gorham.
John Kordon had been in the army and when he came home, they started dating. He always joked that he waited for her, since he was 10 years her senior. They married on October 17, 1950 and settled on the farm with John’s parents Pete and Julianna Kordon. They raised 4 children while farming and ranching. They raised cattle, pigs, and chickens and grew wheat and oat crops. Julia also tended a large garden every year.
Julia’s faith was strong, which carried her through many hardships (including the death of her husband in 1988 and eldest daughter in 2011). Through it all, she found joy in simple things in life – gardening, cooking, crafts, playing cards, doing puzzles, and spending time with her grandchildren. We called her “cheater” in cards, and the grandkids begged for her donuts and her bread and leaves. She made every Christmas Eve meal in advance and froze it for her children and their families.
Julia was preceded in death by her husband John in December 1988, daughter LaVonne, granddaughter Amanda, and 9 brothers and sisters. She is survived by her children Mark (Deb) Kordon, Kurt Kordon, and Donna (Bruce) Doll, her son-in-law Mike Garceau, and by her 8 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren (and another on the way). She is also survived by her sister, Rose Klym.
