Elaine (Solomonson) Bendickson, 86, of Lake Mills, Iowa, died Friday, Feb. 3, 2012, at Good Samaritan Society in Forest City, Iowa.

Funeral service will be 11 a.m. Thursday at Salem Lutheran Church in Lake Mills, Iowa, with Vicar Melinda McCluskey and friend of family, Interim Pastor James Mantel from Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Leland, Iowa. Visitation will be 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday at Mittelstadt Funeral Home, 902 E. Main St., Lake Mills, IA 50450, with a sharing service at 6:30 p.m., where family and friends are encouraged to share a memory of Elaine’s life. The visitation will again continue at the church one hour prior to service time. Burial will take place at North Prairie Lutheran Cemetery in rural Leland, Iowa.

Elaine M. (Solomonson) Bendickson was born Nov. 28, 1925, in Worth County, Iowa, to Ole and Thea (Vange) Nappe. She attended country school until she was in high school when she stayed in a boarding house in Lake Mills and then graduated from Lake Mills High School in 1943.

She was confirmed at Sion Lutheran Church in rural Lake Mills and later married there on Sept. 15, 1946, to Leslie Solomonson. To this union two children, Mary and Robert, were born. Together, they were members of North Prairie Lutheran Church until it’s closing. Leslie preceded her in death in 1990.

Elaine and Roy Bendickson were united in marriage on May 15, 1992. They have been “hand-in-hand” ever since and have made many beautiful memories.

Elaine worked at several different jobs in Lake Mills, but took most pride in her job at Helland Insurance Agency. She was a talented seamstress who could make masterpieces out of material scraps and was always “fixing” on some type of sewing project. She was a “blue ribbon” baker of bread and cookies. She also enjoyed dancing and daily trips to Bonanza with Roy. She was always proud of her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.

She is survived by her husband, Roy Bendickson of Lake Mills, Iowa; her children: Mary Anderson of Coon Rapids and Bob (Cindy) Solomonson of Mesa, Ariz.; four grandchildren: Jennifer, Brian, Inga and Robert, all of Arizona; six great-grandchildren: Noah , Brody, Wyatt, Audrey, Odin and Waylon; one sister, Mary (Parnell) Peterson, of Mason City, Iowa.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Ole and Thea Nappe; her husband, Leslie Solomonson; and sisters: Carmen Petersburg and Opal Thompson; and one brother, Paul Nappe.

You can contact the family with online condolences at www.mittelstadtfuneralhome.com.