North Dakota

Could a Bismarck woman become North Dakota's 1st saint?

Published

1 year ago

December 25, 2024

Could a Bismarck woman become North Dakota's 1st saint?

BISMARCK — Christmas Day marks the ninth anniversary of 31-year-old Michelle Duppong’s death. While her family and friends will feel her absence on this day, they also feel the love, kindness and faith she demonstrated during her short life, along with abundant hope that she not only shared while alive but continues to share in death, which is one of the reasons she is slated to become the first person from North Dakota to become a Catholic saint.

Michelle Duppong

Contributed

In June 2022, Bismarck Bishop David D. Kagan announced the opening of a diocesan investigation into Duppong’s “holiness of life and love for God,” officially starting the long and arduous process of canonization to a saint. On Nov. 1, 2022, Kagan deemed Duppong a servant of god.

Duppong is on track to be the first North Dakotan and one of few around the world to be canonized, said Father Tom Grafsgaard, of Hazen, North Dakota. According to Catholic publications, only 11 people from the U.S. have become canonized saints.

“It’s never happened in the history of North Dakota in either (the Bismarck or Fargo) Diocese,” Grafsgaard said. “It’s quite exceedingly rare for this to be happening.”

In the process of canonization, the Catholic Church declares people “saints.” There are three paths to sainthood: to have died as a martyr for Catholicism; if one lived an expression of love and died a rather quick and unexpected death; or if they gave a heroic example of living all the Christian virtues.

The process of canonization is governed by a strict canonical or juridical procedure established by St. John Paul II in 1983.

After Kagan began the process, Duppong’s cause entered the diocesan phase of investigation into her life. The Michelle Duppong Guild was created — a group tasked with promoting an awareness of her life. Officials are poring over Duppong’s writings, work, demonstrations of faith and the great number of lives she touched while alive, which are illustrated through interviews with those who knew her, Grafsgaard said.

Her case will be built up and eventually sent to the Dicastery for the Causes of the Saints in Rome for the Roman Phase of canonization. A Vatican panel will also investigate and determine if Duppong lived a heroically virtuous life. The Dicastery can then issue a “decree of heroic virtue” in which Duppong would be given the new title of “Venerable Servant of God.”

The third step, beatification, then begins. During this phase, it must be proven that one miracle has been granted by God through Duppong’s intercession. If the Pope declares a true miracle occurred, then Duppong would be declared “Blessed.” Last, a ceremony of canonization would take place where the church declares her a Saint in heaven with God.

“The process is very long,” Grafsgaard said. “I often say, ‘It takes as long as it takes.’ ”

Michelle Duppong overlooking Jerusalem-2013.jpg — Michelle Duppong overlooking Jerusalem in 2013.

Michelle Christine Duppong was born Jan. 25, 1984, the fourth of six children to parents Ken and Mary Ann Duppong. She grew up on the family farm in Haymarsh, North Dakota, where her parents said she loved to help with chores, including caring for sheep but especially gardening, mowing, pruning, weeding, harvesting and canning, according to her mother.

Duppong was named valedictorian and president of her senior class and later attended North Dakota State University, where she earned a degree in horticulture.

After earning her degree, she became a FOCUS missionary at four college campuses, including the inaugural year at the University of Mary, mentoring college students to draw them deeper into the faith. FOCUS is an apostolate dedicated to evangelizing college and university students.

In 2012, she became the director of faith formation for the Bismarck Diocese, where she led parish missions, launched a podcast and spearheaded a three-day Eucharistic conference that drew thousands to the Bismarck Civic Center in 2013.

In the fall of 2014, Duppong was experiencing sharp abdominal pains that doctors initially thought were ovarian cysts, a common but painful issue for women that will sometimes dissolve and go away without major medical treatment. But by December, the pain was unrelenting, and an outpatient surgery was scheduled that month to remove the cysts.

According to Mary Ann Duppong, surgeons were “shocked to find” Michelle Duppong’s abdomen was “full of stage four cancer.”

Doctors expected the young woman to die within months, and hospice care was recommended.

“Michelle was not one to blame anyone for anything,” Mary Ann Duppong said. “Her attitude was, ‘If God wants me to go through this, I will go through this.’ “

Despite the diagnosis, Michelle Duppong continued her life for nearly a full year.

According to the website that outlines the canonization process for Michelle Duppong and its status, she told one of the sisters providing hospice care that she believed she would pass on Christmas Day. Michelle Duppong died at 11:23 p.m. on Dec. 25, 2015.

Shortly after Bishop Kagan initiated the process for Michelle Duppong’s canonization, U.S. bishops affirmed their support for the cause’s advancement.

In this first stage, the primary focus is to raise awareness of Michelle Duppong and the push for her sainthood by spreading as much information about her and her life as possible, which is done through the creation of a guild and much of which can be found at

www.michelleduppongcause.org.

Michelle Duppong2.jpg — An undated photo of Michelle Duppong at the Duppong farm.

In January, a FOCUS-produced documentary titled “Thirst for Souls: The Michelle Duppong Story,” was screened at a FOCUS convention in St. Louis. Afterward, Michelle Duppong’s parents were inundated for hours with comments about how much the movie and Michelle had influenced viewers.

While one cannot necessarily predict when or if Michelle Duppong will become a saint, Grafsgaard said a bishop must believe canonization is likely to begin the process.

“For a bishop to initiate a cause, there should be a well-founded hope for its success,” he said. “There certainly was reputation in her life, and she continues to have it in her death.”

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North Dakota

North Dakota HS Boys | Girls Basketball Scoreboard from Jan 10, 2026

Published

11 hours ago

January 11, 2026

Press Room

High School Basketball logo. Courtesy Midwest Communications.

North Dakota High School Boys | Girls Basketball Scoreboard from Jan 10, 2026

BOYS PREP BASKETBALL=

Alexander-Trinity Christian 81, Divide County 58

Beulah 55, Des Lacs-Burlington 26

Harvey-Wells County 61, Nedrose 51

Killdeer 54, Dunseith 52

Linton 75, Sargent County 32

Milbank, S.D. 64, Hillsboro-Central Valley 61

New Salem-Almont 71, Mandaree 32

Our Redeemer’s 89, Kenmare 32

Parshall 71, Trenton 70

Richey-Lambert, Mont. 57, Beach 55

Rothsay, Minn. 71, Richland 38

Shiloh 70, Oak Grove 59

Watford City 77, South Prairie/Max 64

Westby-Grenora 49, Savage, Mont. 40

White Shield 72, Strasburg 55

Dickinson Trinity Shootout=

Central McLean 70, Bowman County 54

Dickinson Trinity 63, Stanley 22

Wilton-Wing 70, South Heart 51

Ramsey County Tournament=

Championship=

North Star 65, Lakota/Adams-Edmore/Dakota Prairie 57

7th Place=

Warwick 72, Benson County 61

5th Place=

Carrington 53, Griggs-Midkota 45

3rd Place=

Devils Lake 73, Larimore 63

Stutsman County Shootout=

Drake-Anamoose 54, South Border 49

Glen Ullin 47, EKM 44

MPB 63, Washburn 59

Midway-Minto 61, Ellendale 53

Napoleon/G-S 53, Kindred 44

Oakes 69, Kidder County 39

GIRLS PREP BASKETBALL=

Ashby, Minn. 65, Tri-State 49

Benson County 47, Hatton-Northwood 38

Dunseith 46, Killdeer 39

Ellendale 54, South Border 36

Flasher 42, New England 16

Garrison 54, Grant County/Mott-Regent 51

Kenmare 55, Our Redeemer’s 43

Kindred 70, Bottineau 21

Lambert, Mont. 52, Beach 50

Maple River 53, LaMoure 52

Mohall-Lansford-Sherwood 57, TGU 54

New Salem-Almont 67, Mandaree 44

North Prairie 67, Westhope 49

Park River 42, Griggs-Midkota 37

Richey-Lambert, Mont. 52, Beach 50

Rothsay, Minn. 65, Richland 32

Sargent County 55, Linton 48

Savage, Mont. 40, Westby-Grenora 33

Shiloh 56, Oak Grove 47

Sisseton, S.D. 66, Oakes 17

Strasburg 39, White Shield 30

Surrey 67, Larimore 38

Trenton 58, Parshall 40

Dickinson Trinity Shootout=

Central McLean 55, Bowman County 41

South Heart 45, Stanley 41

Sanford Pentagon Classic=

West Fargo Horace 70, Tea, S.D. 41

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North Dakota

Bankruptcies for North Dakota and western Minnesota published Jan. 10, 2026

Published

23 hours ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

Filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court

North Dakota

Kaitlyn Grace Lucier, Fargo, Chapter 7

Samuel Todd Hicks, formerly known as Thomas Samuel Hicks, Fargo, Chapter 7

Teresa and Dominik Renwick, Fargo, Chapter 13

Susan Renee Fuller, formerly known as Susan R. Schaffer, doing business as Susie’s Sparkling Cleaning Service, Fargo, Chapter 7

Shannon Lynn Taylor, Fargo, Chapter 7

Jesse Patrick and Jaime Elizabeth Brown, Williston, Chapter 7

Kerri Lee Weishaar, Minot, Chapter 7

Terry Marie Moritz, Valley City, Chapter 7

Joshua Allen Sewill, Hatton, Chapter 7

Bryan Eugene Flecker, Minot, Chapter 7

Anna Marie Rahm, formerly known as Anna Marie Tanner, and Joshua Edward Rahm, Bismarck, Chapter 13

Sherri Rae Fisher, Baldwin, Chapter 13

Heather Lynn McElroy, formerly known as Heather Anderson, Grand Forks, Chapter 7

Kaitlyn Autrey, Grand Forks, Chapter 7

Michelle Lynn Miller, Fargo, Chapter 13

Kimberly Georgeann Callahan, Fargo, Chapter 13

Erin Elaine and Jose Luiz Murphy, Bismarck, Chapter 7

Shelly and Kieth Quimby, St. Thomas, Chapter 7

Minnesota

Bankruptcy filings from the following counties: Becker, Clay, Douglas, Grant, Hubbard, Mahnomen, Norman, Otter Tail, Polk, Traverse, Wadena and Wilkin.

David Howard Gilpin, Osakis, Chapter 7

Timothy Virgil Hoag, Moorhead, Chapter 7

Jason Darryl Dykhoff, Ottertail, Chapter 7

Zachary Nicholas Hodgson and Jolynn Beth Warnes, formerly known as Jolynn Beth Hodgson, Kensington, Chapter 7

Riley Matthew Hinman, Alexandria, Chapter 7

Layne Christopher Condiff, Park Rapids, Chapter 13

Thomas Beecher Hoyer, Menahga, Chapter 13

Christine Karen Jakubek, also known as Cristine Anderson, Chapter 7

Chapter 7 is a petition to liquidate assets and discharge debts.

Chapter 11 is a petition for protection from creditors and to reorganize.

Chapter 12 is a petition for family farmers to reorganize.

Chapter 13 is a petition for wage earners to readjust debts.

Our newsroom occasionally reports stories under a byline of “staff.” Often, the “staff” byline is used when rewriting basic news briefs that originate from official sources, such as a city press release about a road closure, and which require little or no reporting. At times, this byline is used when a news story includes numerous authors or when the story is formed by aggregating previously reported news from various sources. If outside sources are used, it is noted within the story.

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North Dakota

Hoeven, Armstrong, Traynor speak on OBBB Rural Health Transformation Fund updates in ND

Published

1 day ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

Hoeven, Armstrong, Traynor speak on OBBB Rural Health Transformation Fund updates in ND

BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) – On Friday, North Dakota U.S. Senator John Hoeven, Governor Kelly Armstrong and Health and Human Services Commissioner Pat Traynor explained how the state plans to use millions of dollars from the Big Beautiful Bill’s Rural Health Transformation Fund to transform healthcare across the state.

They spoke extensively about the special session to allocate the funds, and confirmed that it is still tentatively set for Jan. 21.

The Big Beautiful Bill allocated $25 billion for rural healthcare nationwide. North Dakota received $500 million for five years and $200 million for the first year. There is still another $25 billion left to be spent, and North Dakota is hoping to receive an extra $500 million.

“I truly believe that with the plan we’re putting in place and the things we built that line up with that, we’ll get a billion dollars over five years,” said Hoeven.

Federal rules require the state to lock in contracts for the money by October first— a deadline officials say is driving the need for a special session.

In the first year, North Dakota will focus on retention grants to keep existing staff, technical assistance and consultants for rural hospitals, as well as telehealth equipment and home patient monitoring.

A KFYR+ exclusive

Governor Armstrong says the special session will include policy bills tied to how much federal rural health funding the state can earn.

“We’re going to have a physical fitness test for physical education courses, nutrition education, continuing education requirement for physicians, physician assistant licensure compact—which North Dakota has been doing, dealing with that since the heart of the oil boom and moving forward—and then an expanded scope of practice for pharmacists,” said Armstrong.

Hundreds of millions of dollars could reshape healthcare in rural North Dakota, and state leaders say the next few weeks are key to receiving and spending that money wisely.

The governor says he only wants to focus on bills related to the Rural Health Transformation Program during the special session and doesn’t intend to deal with other state issues during that time.

Politicians outline plans for ND Rural Health Transformation Program

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