Frances "Dolly" Luger

Frances “Dolly” Luger (Hupa hu Luta – Redwing) of Mandan, ND, 56 died peacefully with family by her side on Dec 27th, 2023. A Memorial Service will be held Monday, January 8, 2024, at 1:00 PM, at St. George’s Episcopal Church, (601 N 4th St., Bismarck). A gathering of family and friends and prayer service will be from 5-7:00 PM, Sunday, January 7, 2024 at DaWise-Perry Funeral Services, Mandan. The Committal Service will be held at 11:00 AM, Tuesday, January 9, 2024, at St. Peter’s Cemetery, Fort Yates.

Dolly was born on January 16th, 1967 to George and Rebecca (Molash) Dunn. She was adopted as an infant by Ferdinand (Red) and Virginia Luger. She was raised in Ft Yates with love and guidance from both her birth and adoptive families and was very proud of her Native American heritage. Dolly attended college at the University of Mary where a broadcast internship in London, England turned her lifelong love of music into a lifelong love of radio.

Dolly is probably more widely known as “Dolly Dakota” from Radio. Her career began in 1989 at 96.5 the Fox. She moved to Kansas City for a time to pursue other opportunities and became an avid Chiefs fan. Dolly came back to Bismarck in 1996 and worked at Prairie Knights for a while before returning to KFYR and Y93 in 1997 until she left again in 2019 to manage the Mandan Dairy Queen. It did not take long for Cool 98.7 to call on her and Town Square Media became her new radio home. At the time of Dollys death she was also employed at Sanford Family Wellness and Rehab-center in Mandan.

Besides her love of Family and the Radio, Dolly loved adventure. She traveled to Jamaica, Hawaii, and Yellowstone – where she went white water rafting, her declared favorite. She also enjoyed rock climbing in the Black Hills and has summited Devil’s Tower.

Dolly received her cancer diagnosis nearly 6 years ago. She vowed from day One that she would fight and would win! She became a true warrior in the fight against cancer, not only for herself but for others who were also on the battlefield. She felt that God had chosen her because of her strength so that she could be a messenger and a source of strength and support for others who needed it. She fought fiercely with grace and a smile on her face until God rewarded her and took her home.

Dolly is survived by and will be dearly missed by her mom: Virginia Luger of Bismarck, brothers and sisters: Marty (Lisa) Luger of Manitowoc, WI, Dave (Donna) Luger of Ft. Yates, Mike (Julie) Luger of Bismarck, Joe (Cindy) Dunn of Ft. Yates, Cissy (Ernie) Thunderhawk of Mandan, George Dunn Jr, 30 nieces and nephews, her special friends George Gerhardt and Renee Vokal of Mandan, and her two kitties Kalina and Gracie.

Greeting her in paradise are her dad: Red Luger, her biological father and mother: George and Becky Dunn, and her grandparents, aunts, and uncles, and a grandniece.