Irvine W. Bates, 91, Spearfish, SD, died August 9, 2006, at a Spearfish hospital. A memorial service will be held August 15 at 11 a.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Sturgis, SD. His remains will be interred at Union Cemetery in Mandan, ND, following a later memorial service at First Presbyterian Church in Mandan. Irvine was born March 19, 1915, in Oliver County, ND, to Bert and Mabel (Miller) Bates. His grandfather, William Bates, came to Dakota Territory in 1877 and worked on the Bismarck-Deadwood stagecoach line. Irvine graduated from high school at Beulah, ND, where he was a football and basketball star and sang in a trio, in 1935, and shortly thereafter began working for the utility company now known as MDU Resources Group, Inc. He worked at Mott and Glen Ullin, ND, where he met his wife, Norma (Pat) Lidstrom. They were married at Jamestown, ND, on May 11, 1941. In 1953, they moved to Mandan. They had two daughters, Cynthia and Nadine. He joined the U.S. Navy on May 14, 1942, at Minneapolis, MN, and served most of World War II at a naval base in Panama, where he earned a reputation for being able to bring the comforts of refrigeration and air conditioning to a tropical climate. He was discharged on September 22, 1945, with the rank of electricians mate first class. After the war, Irvine returned to his job at MDU, where he worked a total of 44 years before his retirement in 1980. At the time of his retirement, he was a public affairs representative for the company, having worked his way up through the ranks, including serving as district manager at Mandan. Irvine was known for making friends with almost everyone he met and had many acquaintances throughout the Dakotas, Montana, and Wyoming. At the time of his death, he was one of the oldest MDU retirees. Irvine was active in many organizations in North Dakota and was appointed by Gov. Arthur Link to the Old West Trail Foundation, which promoted tourism in the Dakotas, Montana, Nebraska, and Wyoming. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church, Mandan, the Masonic Lodge, the Rotary Club, the Mandan Chamber of Commerce, the Bismarck Police Posse, and was on the board of the Custer Drama at Fort Lincoln. In 1968, he served as an escort for then presidential candidate Richard M. Nixon on a campaign trip to Bismarck and received a signed thank you letter from Nixon. Irvine and Norma also were members of the Revelers Dance Club and he was fond of saying that he met Norma on the dance floor. He was an elder at the First Presbyterian Church in Sturgis when in his eighties and earlier was instrumental in forming a Presbyterian congregation in Spearfish. He also was a deacon and elder at First Presbyterian Church in Mandan for many years. Irvine was an avid wood worker and made many finely crafted candle holders, lamp stands, gavels, bowls, and willow walking canes. He also enjoyed horses, hunting, fishing, reading, and travel. He especially enjoyed the Black Hills and spent many hours traveling its back roads. His wife, Norma, died on September 26, 1986. On January 14, 1989, he married Ethel Klein at Mandan. Later that year, they moved from Mandan to Country Club Village in Spearfish, where he resided the rest of his life except for slightly more than a month at Edgewood Vista in Spearfish. Irvine is survived by his wife, Ethel, Spearfish; two daughters and sons-in-law, Cynthia Bates Wolberg and Gary Wolberg, Bismarck, ND, and Nadine and Steve Runquist, Las Vegas, NV; two grandchildren, Eric Runquist and Amanda Wolberg; two brothers, Kenny, Bowman, ND, and Dale, Billings, MT; a sister, Esther Wallender, Beulah, ND; and many nephews and nieces. He was preceded in death by his wife, Norma, his parents, four brothers, and a sister. The family prefers memorials to the hospice program at Spearfish Regional Hospital or to First Presbyterian Church, Mandan.