Ina was the oldest of four children born to Jack and Ida (Njos) Lenard.  She was born January 14, 1921 in Bowman ND where she lived most of her life.  Her Uncle Art said her parents brought her home in a horse drawn wagon. Ina walked outdoors to celebrate her 100th birthday in January because of covid restrictions. She passed away in Loveland CO after moving there in 2014 to be near her son's family.  Megan especially spent time "driving Miss Ina"

She graduated from Bowman High School in 1939.   Some time after graduation she and her sister Leona went out to Butte Montana and spent the summer

working in an ice cream shop scooping treats for the men coming through

on troop trains headed for WWII. Ina completed a 1st Grade certificate from Spearfish Teacher's College with a $60 loan from her Grandfather Njos, $25 from her mother and by working for room and board. She taught school at the Arnet (Ladner area), Pleasant Valley and Lone Tree schools for a total of 3 years in SD and 1 in ND.

She married  Lester Holmquist in 1946 and they celebrated 53 anniversaries and probably waltzed at most of them. They had two children, Lee(Megan) in Loveland CO and Anita(Dennis)Rohde of New Town ND. She has 4 Grandchildren. Chris (Nina) of New Town, Greg (MelissaKuntz) of Duluth MN, Kari Urquiza of Loveland CO and Kevin Lehtinen of Berthoud CO.  There are seven great grandchildren; Cora and Greta Rohde of New Town and Stacia Murrow, Bishop and Envy Urquiza, Maverick Massey, of LoveLand and Kloi Fox, Lily and Adleigh Lehtinen of Berthoud CO

She and Lester farmed and raised sheep and later breeding stock.  Ina and her children raised a countless number of "bum" lambs. Each had a name and were lovingly fed and doctored.  Tears in the eyes when they went to market.

She loved young people and spent 17 years as a Sunday School teacher and was 4-H leader to over 75 young people over 35 years.  She chaperoned many teens to the NDState Fair.  Planning and working on Floats, fair booths, public speaking, finishing projects were part of the drill. Some of those work sessions lasted all day for several days which most likely included  the dreaded advice to "rip it out".  There  was always lunch. She loved being an Extension Service Volunteer and served on the 4-H Council, judged at many events and participated in Extension Service projects that included teaching adults especially in the area of clothing construction.

She loved baking the most;  chocolate cake, caramel rolls and the hundreds of apple pies she and Lester made were enjoyed by work crews and guests.  There were often good-natured arguments about who would get the corner pieces because the frosting was thickest there.  In later years Ina and Lester would fill a freezer with apple pies, only the biggest pie plates were suitable.

She was a member of First Lutheran Church in Rhame and was active in the Women's Group, and loved quilting and the quilting woment at First Lutheran of Rhame.  She was a member of Adelaide Homemaker's Club  She was also a member of the Bowman County Fair Board and representative to the State Fair Board. She was given the Bowman County 4-H Alumni  Award, Friend of the Fair Award, Bowman County Agriculturist of the Year  and was inducted into the North Dakota 4-H Hall of Fame.

In later years she and Lester spend many winters traveling in warmer climates visiting relatives and friends they made especially in Texas.  She loved to bring

her friends gifts from Mexico

Special friends helped her in later years including Berna Hendrickson and her family, and Lina Yong of Loveland.

She was preceded in death by her husband Lester, her parents, her sister Florence Smith of St Joseph, Missouri, Leona Sweaney of Seattle, brother Larry Lenard of Harvey LA.  Sister-n laws Bernice Freitag and Muriel Peterson, Brother-in -laws Albin, Orville, Raymond, and Melvin Holmquist, and many dearly loved Aunts and Uncles of the Njos family.

She is survived by her son and daughter, her grandchildren, great-grandchildren and numerous cousins, nieces and nephews as well as sister-in-law Arlene(Henry)Messer of Inverness FL