Tim Reberg died before his community could help him.

The tiny town of Bowdon will help his family and go ahead with a benefit supper to pay for new freezers and cooling compressors for the Bowdon Grocery and Locker.

The spaghetti meal will be held at 5 p.m. Thursday at the Bowdon Community Center.

It had been planned for weeks.

The store, owned by Tim and Ruth Reberg for several years, holds the small town of 140 people together and it was appreciated. When it came time to replace the aging and expensive cooling system, people were willing to reach into their pockets to help keep it all going.

See, the store is not some corporate shadow and this is not like Bismarck, for example, holding a benefit for Wal-Mart.

This is personal. Tim and Ruth Reberg were engaged in the same struggle of keeping this one rural town alive, where so much else, like the school, like the elevator, has already gone away.

Then, just Wednesday, Tim Reberg, 48, got up in the morning to take a shower and get ready for his day. Instead, unbelievably, he dropped unconscious to floor. He was pronounced dead at the Carrington hospital. His funeral is Tuesday.

Laurel Jones, who's on the Bowdon development board, said the town is devastated by his death and determined to do all it can to help Ruth Reberg and the couple's young daughters, Dawn and Faith.

The Rebergs' store means people don't have to travel 17 miles to the other nearest store in Fessenden. Some people are too old to drive and what they would do for food is a looming concern.

Jones said the Rebergs' locker produced a quality of specialty meats, hamburger so lean it took some butter in the pan, and other cuts that had a far-and-wide reputation.

She said the couple ran the grocery with the aim of providing fresh quality food, like spinach, avocados, and Ricotta cheese, if they could get such foods in small enough quantities to sell.

"I can't imagine life without Tim," Jones said.

She said Tim Reberg was hesitant to accept financial help and initially wasn't thrilled with the idea of benefit.

To persuade him, "I stood there and said, 'Do you know how important this store is and how much it's appreciated?'" Jones recalled.

Now, the town will get through the funeral and then the benefit and see what the future holds for the Reberg family, the Bowdon Grocery and Locker and the community.

Anyone who wants to contribute and can't attend the supper can send a donation to Bowdon Development Center Inc., P.O. Box 314, Bowdon, N.D., 58418.

(Reach reporter Lauren Donovan at 888-303-5511 or lauren@westriv.com.)