Pauline “Polly” Schiwal, 80, Dickinson, died Sunday, January 19, 2020 at the St. Luke’s Home, Dickinson. Polly’s Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10 a.m., Friday, January 24, 2020 at Queen of Peace Catholic Church, Dickinson, with Msgr. Thomas Richter as the celebrant. Interment will follow at St. Elizabeth’s Cemetery, Lefor. Visitation will be Thursday from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Ladbury Funeral Service with a Catholic Daughters Rosary and vigil at 7 p.m. with Deacon Bob Zent presiding. Visitation will continue one hour prior to the service at the church.
Pauline was born December 2, 1939 on her family ranch south of Richardton, next to Plum Creek, to Phillip and Pauline (Schroeder) Schuld. In later years, she would say that the doctor arrived late for her birth, but just in time for breakfast. To everyone who loved her, she was known as Polly. She was the oldest of three children. She attended country school as a young girl with her sister, Phyllis and her brother, Robert. On the coldest days of winter, her father would drive all three of them to school in a horse-drawn sleigh. She graduated from St. Mary’s High School in Richardton in 1957.
She met the love of her life, William Schiwal in 1955. They met while out dancing in Dickinson. Their first date was at a Kirwie, a Hungarian Fall Festival and dance in Lefor. Their second date was on New Year’s Eve, when it rained and froze so much that Polly had to be taken home in the only four-wheel drive vehicle available; a silage wagon. Bill and Polly fell deeply in love and were wed at St. Stephen’s on June 17, 1958. They began their family in 1959 with the birth of their first of many children. After which time they moved to Dickinson. Polly dedicated almost every hour of the day to raising her ten children.
In 1980, Polly and her family moved to Belfield. Service to the community was indispensable to Polly. She was involved in Catholic Daughters, the Altar Society and dedicated much of her time to helping out at St. Bernard’s Catholic Church. On any given day she could be spotted serving communion, tending the flower gardens, faithfully attending holy hour and singing in the choir with her husband. She was also not shy of whipping each new priest into shape.
After the children were grown and gone, Polly took up woodcarving with Bill. Every Christmas, her children and 20 grandchildren looked forward to receiving a magnificently hand-carved ornament as a gift. While visiting grandma’s house, doing the dishes was not a chore, but something that was fought over, because whoever did the dishes received a single piece of Hershey’s chocolate afterwards.
Bill and Polly became residents of Edgewood Hawks Point in 2017. After several years of battling various illnesses, Polly was taken to heaven on January 19, 2020. Pauline was the historian of the family and would regale stories of the old days with a twinkle in her eye. Her stories, her unconditional love and her life are terribly missed. She always gave the best hugs, and we look forward to being with her again.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Phillip and Pauline Schuld; her brother, Robert Schuld; her oldest son, James Schiwal and three blessed children lost in infancy: Marie, Danielle Marie and William Joseph. She is survived by her husband, William Schiwal; her sister, Phyllis (Orest) Baranko; as well as her children, Duane (Lela) Schiwal, Gerald Schiwal, Thomas (Melody) Schiwal, Susan (Rex) Jacobsen, Russell (Elizabeth) Schiwal, Manette (Jessie) Obrigewitch, Carol (Scott) Somerville, Christine (Todd) Wieneke, and Paula (Rodney) Mongold; as well as 20 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, the family prefers memorials to the Assumption Abbey in Richardton.
