Michael Donald Syvertson died on July 3, 2021, at Sanford Hospital in Bismarck. He had family with him until his last breaths.

Michael was born near Overly, ND, on March 10, 1953, to Donald and Ida Syvertson. He was the oldest of five sons and thrived when he was helping on the family farm. He loved the farm and his family most in life. Throughout his childhood, his family enjoyed trips to various lakes, spending time with relatives, and was very involved in the Overly and Willow City communities. As he grew older, his love for cars and planes developed and he would spend hours building various models. He was incredibly proud of his first car, a Mustang. He also became a talented skier, tore up dirt roads on his motorcycle, and earned more speeding tickets than his parents knew about.

Michael graduated from Willow City High School in 1971 and went on to college at the University of North Dakota. He initially majored in Aeronautics, with a goal to become a pilot, but due to health-related reasons he changed his focus to Business Management. He graduated in 1975 with numerous stories of mischief, great friends, and a strong desire to return to his roots in Overly. He again joined his family farm and became an active citizen in the community. He was on ski patrol and married Debbie Williams in Dunseith on July 24, 1982. Michael and Debbie had two children, Marissa on May 13, 1985, and Andrea on June 12, 1987. Due to health-related reasons, Michael had to unfortunately stop farming in 1993. After that, he focused his time on supporting his family and friends in any way that he could.

Michael's family moved to Minot in 1998 where he continued his unofficial occupation as "chauffer" to his daughters. He and Debbie were divorced in 2008, but remained close friends following the divorce. He resided at The Wellington until moving to Trinity Nursing Home in 2011.

Michael's favorite pastime for the past 10 years was visiting with family on the phone. He has been referred to as the "town crier" as he was constantly sharing information about one family member or another. He was the kindest person you could ever meet and always radiated his positive attitude to those who loved him. While he took pride in being "ornery" at the nursing home, those who loved him knew that it was all for show. Michael's gentle spirit and persistent phone calls will truly be missed. He was preceded in death by his father (Donald), his uncle, and his aunts. He was survived by his mother (Ida), brothers (Tim, Dave, Rick, and John), daughters (Marissa and Andrea), grandchildren (Jayden, Kynsli, Kaylee, Kristian, and Kenna), and his former wife (Debbie).

Michael's funeral will be held at Willow Creek Church in Overly, ND, on July 8 at 10:00am. Following the service, a celebration of life will be held at the family farm of Rick and Pam Syvertson at 8450 26th Ave NE, Overly, ND 58384.

In Lieu of flowers the family requests that memorials be given to: Marissa Gillmore 801 62nd Ave NE, Minot, ND 58703 or Andrea Lang 44 Valley Bluffs Court, Minot, ND 58701.