Louise Muriel Madsen Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

Louise Muriel (Buness) Madsen went to be with her Lord December 25, 2020, leaving behind four grown children: Heidi Madsen of Portland OR, Sonja and her husband Bud Herigstad of Dundee OR, Carl Madsen of Portland OR, and Victor and his wife Carmel Madsen of Troutdale, OR. She also leaves behind eight grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Louise was born in Powers Lake, North Dakota to Norwegian settlers Clarence and Tena Buness. She was 2nd of 7 children: Everett, Louise, Corinne, Evelyn, James, Dorothy,Margaret. (James and Margaret died in infancy.) All her siblings preceded her in death. Louise was the great granddaughter of Bardo and Karen Breding who were instrumental in helping establish Bethel Norwegian Baptist Church of White Earth which was later moved to Powers Lake North Dakota under the foundational guidance of Olaf Breding, her grand uncle. Louise’s Buness grandparents and Aunt Inga were all charter members. They met in a one-room schoolhouse for prayer, worship and fellowship. Louise came to faith in Christ there at age 10 and was later baptised. Her interest in going overseas was sparked by the sharing of some missionaries from Ethiopia in a ladies meeting there. Louise’s hardiness and pioneering spirit were formed there on the North Dakota prairie. Her father and his brother Bjarne Buness (wife Maren + five kids) farmed adjacent properties so the families worked, worshipped, played and schooled together. Then came the Dust Bowl and 6-7 years of crop failure just prior to and during the depression. In 1937 the family joined Tena Buness’s family in Tacoma WA to celebrate her parent’s 50th wedding anniversary. The family didn’t return to Power’s Lake because Bjarne told Clarence there was again no crop; nothing to come back for. Clarence went back to sell the farm and dispose of everything. He returned to Tacoma, taking any physical labor possible to provide for the basic needs of the family and to send the rest back to ND to pay off the mortgage incurred during the “hard years”. Tena’s bachelor uncle loaned the family $2500 to buy a home. Tena and the children worked in the fields in the summers until they had repaid the loan. Louise had completed grades 1-7 in a one-room schoolhouse with about 30 students. In Tacoma, she entered 8th grade with 800 students. She graduated from Lincoln High School in 1942 just after Pearl Harbor whereupon she worked at Mt. Rainer war plant patching inner tubes for army vehicles. During High School, Pastor Marion Flint of Bethesda Baptist Church, the church they walked to the first week they were in Tacoma, led a vibrant ministry of the high school students in prayer and outreach. He encouraged Louise in her desire to be a missionary. So Louise attended Multnomah School of the Bible in 1943-46 doing VBS and door-to-door evangelizing during the summers. After that she worked for a year and a half as Bethesda’s church secretary and served in the Children’s work. During this time she learned about the newly formed Conservative Baptist Foreign Mission Society. In order to apply, she completed her BA in Education at PLU in 3 years, graduating in 1951. In January of ‘48, a plane crash in Belgium Congo resulted in the deaths of 3 missionaries. Louise was one of those who responded to the call “Who will take their place?” She was appointed in 1951 and served with CBFMS in Belgium Congo/Zaire/DRC for 39 years, first learning French to do so. Louise taught mostly high school students, but also teachers and widows. During her years Louise adapted and went through the upheaval of Belgium Congo’s independence, four evacuations, including a 10-day ordeal when 14 missionaries were captured while trying to evacuate. Louise also adjusted her personal life when she married widower Richard Madsen and helped raise his four children. Upon retirement, Richard and Louise Madsen returned to Tacoma, WA and to her beloved Bethesda Baptist Church. They saw the wisdom of moving closer to family in their later years, settling in Newberg OR at The Friendsview Retirement Community and joining Grace Baptist Church. Louise served on the Spiritual Care Team at Friendsview as well as the Missions Groups at GBC. She was enjoyed and loved by many wherever she lived! Louise loved beauty: flowers, clothing, pretty glass dishes; collecting stamps, coins, cookies and keys; and keeping in touch with loved ones in the States and overseas. Her address book was one of her treasured possessions. She was a night owl... when she could work without interruption. So she was often awake when calls came from beloved former students in Africa. Louise also had a passion for helping any of her grandkids who were interested in furthering their education. Her fascinating story telling and cheery disposition will be greatly missed. In lieu of flowers, Louise hoped others would help her granddaughter Hannah finish her stint with ELIC China whom she was supporting at the time of her death.

Louise Muriel Madsen

January 30, 1925 - December 25, 2020