Brita Torstveit

Brita (Tveit) Torstveit passed away peacefully in her home in the care of family and friends on December 8, 2020. She was 92 years old at the time of her death. Brita was born in Vikedal, Norway, on June 17, 1928, to Lars and Kari Tveit. She was one of ten children, including, Marta (Tveit) Mjølsnes, Valborg (Tveit) Fjelde, Randi (Tveit) Jørgensen, Ingrid (Tveit) Eide, Knut Tveit, Odd Tveit, Valdemar Tveit, Sigurd Tveit, and a brother who died in infancy. In Norway, Brita worked on the family farm. She also helped neighbors and worked at a hotel. Later she received training as a nurses’ aid and worked in a hospital in Stavanger. Brita met Johannes Torstveit at a dance. They dated until he followed the lead of two of his brothers and moved to Neihart, Montana. After settling in, Johannes wrote to Brita, asking her to come to Montana and be his wife. She accepted and became the only member of her family to leave Norway. In 1955, Brita traveled by ship to Ellis Island, New York , aloneand unable to speak English, where she was met by Johannes’s aunt. She then flew to Great Falls where Johannes was waiting for her. They married on June 6, 1955, in Choteau where there was a pastor who spoke Norwegian. Thinking that his new bride would be happier in a larger town, Johannes left Neihart, and the couple settled in Great Falls, where they were blessed with four children. Several years later, Johannes’s brother Olaf asked Johannes to move to White Sulphur Springs to work for his logging business. Brita was reluctant to leave the comfortable house Johannes had built for the family, but she consented to move.They stayed in White Sulphur, making some good friends there, until Johannes was seriously injured in a logging accident. They then moved back to Great Falls where they remained for the rest of their days. Brita was preceded in death by her husband. She is survived by her son, John Torstveit; daughters, Kari Patterson, Betty Radovich, and Linda (Rob) Bingemann; eight grandchildren, Brittainy (Dereck) Besich, Tayler (Justin) Dill, Kellie (Chris) Kaufman, Zach (Candace) Radovich, Kari (Zac) Cleveland, Hannah (Ryan) Haffemann, Chas (Dusti) Patterson, and Matthew Patterson; as well as fifteen great grandchildren who were the lights of her life. Due to covid restrictions, the memorial service will be limited to family. The service will be held at O’Connor Funeral Home,( 2425 - 8th Avenue North), at 10:00 on Saturday, December 19. After the service, a video of the service will be available at www.SchniderFuneralHome.com. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in Brita’s honor to Meals on Wheels, 1620 12th Avenue North, Great Falls, MT 59405.