Lois White passed away at the age of 90 on March 30, 2026, surrounded by her children and grandchildren in her home in Burns.She was born July 21, 1935 as Lois Esther Bergeson in the small Midwestern town of Fertile, Minnesota to parents Melvin and Olga, the second oldest of 6 children.Lois is survived by four of her children; Joel, Charlotte, Rawleigh and Dean, along with 12 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren; as well as her brother Rolly and sister Beth.She is preceded in death by her son Kurt in 2009 and her sister Edith and brother Paul 2024.Lois received her Bachelor's Degree in Music Education from Northwestern University at St Paul, during which time she met Mr. Henry Slater, the principal of a small school out west who had been scouting in the Midwest for new teachers. Lois, having been swayed by the promise of cowboys and adventure, made her way to Burns from Minnesota in 1957 at the age of 22, where a position teaching music at Henry L Slater Elementary School awaited her.Lois would never pass up an opportunity to tell you how she traveled west for 2 days via train and with only two suitcases, to be picked up by Mr. Slater himself when she stepped off the train.Lois would spend the next 25 years teaching music to hundreds of students, many of which remain in Harney county and remember her time as their teacher with great fondness and admiration. She could often be found playing the piano in her home, in her church and in the schools to bring a smile to the faces of her family, students and friends.For the 1957 Homecoming football game, the Burns team traveled to Jordan Valley, accompanied by a parade of students, teachers - including Lois - and local fans. At this game, Lois was introduced to a local boy named Don, who had just returned home from four years of service on an aircraft carrier in the Pacific, with a budding future as a rancher ahead of him. She and Don would be married 3 months later, and in a weekly phone call home to her parents, she described her new fiance to her mother Olga as: "he's short, handsome and smokes a lot!"As it turned out, she loved being the wife of a cowboy. Lois was the epitome of the answer to the old question of: what contributes most to being a successful rancher? That answer being, "having a wife with a great job in town."While she wasn't much into being a cowgirl herself, Lois thrived in this cowboy community. She was never short of a "hotdish" meal, a Deviled egg and a Gatorade to share with those who returned to the house for lunch after an afternoon in the branding pen.Lois and Don would remain at each other's side for the next 69 years, through 5 children, seemingly countless grandchildren, 3 homes, hundreds of cattle, a beautiful garden, and an endless stream of smiles, giggles and antics.Lois was a faithful follower of Jesus and a long time member of Harney County Faith Baptist Church where she continued to play the piano into her 90’s. Donations in Lois’s memory can be made to Faith Baptist Church or the Burns High School music program. Memorial services for Lois & Don White will be held on May 23, 2026.