Ragnhild Andrea Jensine Glad Sondrol was born June 21, 1908, and just celebrated her 101st birthday.
Ragnhild graduated from Turtle Lake High School in 1926. She is Turtle Lake's oldest alumni. She then went to Valley City Normal School and at the end of that summer received her teacher's certificate. She taught in the Goodrich area for the next five years. Ragnhild would ride a horse the two miles to the one-room schoolhouse. She was responsible for all of the janitorial work, starting the fire in the stove and teaching all eight grades.
Ragnhild married Melvin Sondrol on Feb. 26, 1932. They farmed 11 miles northeast of Turtle Lake until retiring in 1969. In 1989 they moved to an apartment in Turtle Lake. Her husband of 57 years passed away that July.
She now lives in the swing bed unit of Turtle Lake's Community Memorial Hospital. She says she's 101 and it's about time someone else takes care of her. She plays cards daily and insists on tomato soup for dinner and supper.
Her family includes a son, Donald Sondrol; four grandchildren, twins Robert Sondrol and Linda Schlafmann, Kevin Sondrol and Patrice Leddy; nine great-grandchildren, Barry, Nolan and Cole Schlafmann, Alisa, Steven and Kaitlin Leddy and Isaac, Mariah and Melaree Sondrol.