The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1914-01-30
CLOSES SCHOOLS
s. TO DO NURSING
Teacher Dismisses Pupils While She
Took Charge of Family Ill
With Pneumonia.

years class from the Hibbing high
school is a heroine, not only in the
eyes Of her local friends but among
the residents of the county and north
west, who have been acquainted with
the details regarding her seven days.
fight against the ravages Of disease
and death in a backwoods settlement
where she has been teaching school.
Out in the backwoods country dis
trict, II miles from Cook, the nearest
railroad station, rural school was dis
missed last week because Sigrid
Koivisto, an IS year old school mis-
tress, felt that she was obeying> a
highsense of duty by acting as nurse
in the home of one of the homestead
ers which had been invaded by disease
and death.
A story Of the heroism of the little
school teacher was brought to the city
last week by R. D. McKercher, HUI
name agent, who visited the home of
Nickola Bergman, where he found
Miss Koivisto, taking care of whole
family which had been afflicted with
pneumonia. A father and six children
ranging in age from to II years
were found in bed.
Mrs. Bergman, mother of the sick
children, died last Sunday morning,
At the time of her death, all of the
other members Of the family, except
baby four months old were sick-a-bed
with bad colds which have since de-
veloped into pneumonia. Miss Koivis-
to was informed of conditions at the
home and understood that the Berg
mans were in need of medical attend
ance and the service of a nurse. She
decided to dismiss her school for a
week and give her attention to the
stricken family. The children of the
community were so notified. The
school is No. % of the unorganized
district.
When the Bergman family was first
taken down with the sickness, DR..
Grove of Virginia was called. He paid
one visit to the family before Mrs.
Bergman died, but did not return I'M
til Wednesday of last week, when he
accompanied Humane Agent McKer-
cher to the homesteader's home.
Neighbors had removed the body of
Mrs. Bergman and had taken it. to
Sand Lake, twenty miles away, for
burial. The baby was also taken to
Sand Lake and placed in the care of
relatives. At the request of the father
of the children all the bedding which
had been used by the mother was
burned, it being presumed that the
woman had been afflicted with a con-
tagious disease.
| Humane Agent McKercher declares
that he found Miss Koivisto taking
and recording hourly temperatures of
each member of the family now under
her care. The young woman told him
that although she had no. training as
nurse, she understood about some Of
their duties. The family is now under
the care of DR.. Grove. The father,
who has been dangerously i'll, is be-
lieved to have passed ths critical stage
and will recover. All of the children,
Mary IL; Hilja, 9; George g.; John 5;
and Albert are expected to live.
The humane agent also found five
sick children suffering from bad colds
and grip at the home of another home
steader, Don Makari, two miles away.
On his trip to Cook yesterday he
ordered new bedding and few other
supplies sent to the stricken Berg
man family