Sylvia was born May 10, 1926 in Mountrail County to Sigurd and Olga Bakke. Sylvia was the fifth of ten children. She grew up on the family farm and attended the Cottonwood Township country school through the 8th grade, then roomed in Stanley, attended and graduated from Stanley High School.

Alton Olson and Sylvia were married on November 19, 1946. They lived on their farm southwest of Powers Lake and later moved to Tioga where they made their permanent home. They raised two children, Allene (Charles) Backman of Madison, WI and Cary Olson of Tioga.

Sylvia was a wonderful homemaker and her homemade buns were very popular. They were fondly referred to as “Sylvia Buns” and were requested at many family gatherings. She was always busy baking, sewing, knitting washcloths for gifting, crocheting afghans and doing other needlework through the years.
She was a member of the First Baptist Church of Tioga and involved as a Sunday School teacher, an Awana’s teacher, and on the kitchen social committee. Sylvia was a member of the Tioga Senior Citizens and a charter member of the Tioga Sons of Norway.

Sylvia was a loving mother, a caring grandmother to two grand-daughters and a special aunt to numerous nieces and nephews.

Sylvia is survived by her son, Cary Olson of Tioga and her daughter, Allene (Charles) Backman of Madison, WI; her grand-daughters, Carrie Jane (John) Mesoloras of Madison, WI, Maureen (Steve) Holt of San Francisco, CA;sister, Nina Williams of Cottonwood, AZ and brother, Ernie Bakke of Oronoco, MN.

Sylvia was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Alton; siblings, Alvin Bernice, George, Lewis “Benny”, Ole, Maurice, Thora and an infant son.