Delcie Danroth Light

Delcie Danroth Light, of Devils Lake, ND, died on August 10th, 2023, age 84, of natural causes at CHI St. Alexius Health Devils Lake Hospital.

Final arrangements for Delcie are being handled by the Gilbertson Funeral Home, Devils Lake, ND. Services will be held at Devils Lake United Methodist Church on August 26th, 2023, at 10:30 a.m. Delcie will be interred in her husband’s plot at the Veterans’ Cemetery, Mandan, ND.

Delcie was born in Mandan, ND, on February 14th, 1939, as the only child of John Peter Hoagland Danrot and Della Cotton Danrot. Although Delcie’s home was Bismarck ND, she spent much of her childhood living with her grandparents, Fay and Lucy Cotton, in Mandan, ND. After graduation from Mandan High School, Delcie attended Jamestown College (now Jamestown University) for two years before transferring to North Dakota State University, Fargo.

Delcie met her future husband, William, on June 28th, 1958, at the Bismarck train station as he was returning home to Center, ND following his honorable discharge from the United States Army. Three years later, on August 26th, 1961, they were married at McCabe United Methodist Church in Bismarck, ND.

Delcie graduated from NDSU in 1961 with a Bachelor of Science degree in English, and taught one year in the Argusville, ND, Public School system (now Northern Cass). The couple then enjoyed living in Terry, Montana for four years where William was employed in the public school system while Delcie focused on their two young children. Later, Delcie taught English at Hellgate High School in Missoula, MT, while William attended graduate school at the University of Montana.

In 1967, William was offered a position at Lake Region Junior college, so the couple returned to North Dakota. During their first year living in Devils Lake, Superintendent Clarence Erlandson asked Delcie to take over the instruction of an English class when the teacher resigned mid-year. The following year, Delcie was asked to take over the development and instruction of the Responsible Living class.

In 1968, Delcie and her husband began building their home in Frison Addition and welcomed a third child to their family. Delcie was then hired to administer a newly instituted Early Childhood Education program on the Devils Lake Sioux Reservation (now Spirit Lake Nation). It was her responsibility to build this program from the ground up since there was no existing framework. Delcie established the program and saw it running smoothly before resigning after four years and handing over the administration to native staff.

In 1972, Delcie joined the Devils Lake High School faculty full time, teaching 12th grade English and a number of other elective courses. She was a Senior Class advisor and mentor to many students. After joining the DLHS faculty, Delcie completed a master’s degree in English from the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks. In 1988, she was selected as Teacher of the Year for Devils Lake Public Schools and was a finalist in the state Teacher of the Year awards. Delcie retired after 28 years of teaching in public schools. She took great pride in being an educator of thousands of students.

Delcie was a great lover of learning, teaching, gardening, nature, pets, and family. She wasn’t much of a “joiner;” however, there were groups whose members and fellowship she found especially satisfying:  AAUW study group in Devils Lake, and Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR), Prairie Grass chapter in Grand Forks, ND, of which she was a Life Member. Delcie was an accomplished writer whose poetry and essays appeared in a number of state and national publications.

Delcie is survived by her husband of 61 years, William; her three children: Christiane, William, and James; and her eight grandchildren: Sarah and Thomas Hill; Wyatt, Josephine, and Ethan Light; Brantley and Olivia Light and Kayla (Babinski) Wollschlager.
Delcie is preceded in death by her maternal grandparents, Fay and Lucy Cotton, and by her parents, John Peter Hoagland and Della Cotton Danrot.

The family suggests that any memorials be directed to an educational or animal welfare charity of your choice.