Anita Christine Kury

Anita (Nita) Christine Kury

Born November 8, 1950, to Norman and Carolina Ostroot in Viborg, South Dakota. Nita attended South Dakota State University where she studied Journalism. There she met and married Paul Kury on September 1, 1972. They adopted daughter Jocelyn who joined their family on August 12, 1977.

Nita was always a creative and inquisitive soul. Her parents owned and operated the Viborg newspaper, The Viborg Enterprise, where she would help after school; it seemed printing was in her blood. Over the years she worked at several newspapers including The Storm Lake (IA) Tribune; The Holland (MI) Sentinel; and when moving to Omaha, Nebraska in 1980, Nita joined The Omaha World Herald, supporting the circulation department and becoming a route manager before retiring in 1986.

Eventually Nita started a business called Porcelain Impressions. She not only poured, fired, and sanded fine porcelain figurines, ornaments and jewelry, she also painted many of them with such precision and beauty which helped with her sales at many national craft conventions. One ornament, a tear-drop design, was used by teams of tole painters across the country and displayed on a Christmas tree at the Smithsonian Museum.

After moving to Texas from Omaha in 1991, Nita took an active interest in supporting her daughter’s high school drill team activities, creating and publishing the team’s monthly newsletter and being an overall awesome cheerleader and team mom.

In 1993, she was given the gift of life from her brother, Vaughan, after her kidneys had failed from complications related to her type 1 diabetes. He donated a kidney, aptly coined “the little guy”, which helped extend Nita’s life 26 more years, allowing her to see Jocelyn’s high school and college graduations and spend more cherished time taking trips to Napa with Paul and visiting Jocelyn often in Colorado.

The Kury Family joined Crown of Life Lutheran Church in 1994. While a member at Crown of Life, Nita was actively involved with the church’s growth. She and Paul started the first monthly newsletter. Nita was instrumental in starting the Baptismal Banner program and Prayer Shawl program, and she was an active member of the Craft Group, providing support and services until health issues limited her participation.

One of the most enjoyable and rewarding activities was participating in the Wednesday morning Women’s Bible Study. Rumor has it that she wasn’t the most quiet and reserved member – but what prays at Bible Study, stays at Bible Study.

During these last years, Nita faced numerous health issues, each time showing her strong Norwegian willpower by persevering through each. She always realized she was never alone; her strong faith in Jesus was a steadfast key that guided her through each challenge, regularly feeling His presence and seeing Him stand beside her.

On Sunday morning, February 17, 2019, Nita’s struggles with her health finally came to an end, and she joined our Lord and Savior in Heaven. She is preceded in death by her mother, father and brother. Nita’s sister, Julie Ostroot, resides in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Husband Paul resides in Euless, Texas, and daughter Jocelyn resides in Denver, Colorado.

IN LIEU OF FLOWERS: A Memorial has been established in Nita’s name with the American Diabetes Association ( http://main.diabetes.org/goto/InMemoriam_NitaKury ).