Rooted in Rural Care
The Peltiers’ endowment strengthens UND’s mission to grow family physicians close to home.
Joe and Norma Peltier believed deeply in recognizing the dignity of every person and giving back to the rural communities where they lived, worked, and raised their family.
“Dad always said, ‘If you want to get things done, don’t care about who gets the credit,’” recalled his daughter, Dr. Suzette Peltier, ’85.
The couple met as standout basketball players at rival high schools, dated in college — Joe at NDSU and Norma at Moorhead State University — and married in 1952. After Joe’s service in the U.S. Army and their work as educators in central North Dakota, they moved to his hometown to expand the family agribusiness, Arthur Companies.
Joe welcomed company guests from around the world into their home, and Norma fed them, showing off her farm-earned “milk muscles” and inviting each to mark their home country on the kitchen’s world map, piquing her children’s curiosity beyond North Dakota.
Dad always said, ‘If you want to get things done, don’t care about who gets the credit.’Dr. Suzette Peltier, ’85
Beyond the Rivalry
In 1979, Joe was elected to the North Dakota House of Representatives and was a part of the decision to bring all four years of UND’s School of Medicine & Health Sciences (SMHS) medical training in-state, transitioning third-year clinical rotations from Minnesota to North Dakota. The change would have long-term effects on recruitment and retention efforts, as well as on the Peltier family.
Suzette was among the first class to complete all four years of medical school in North Dakota. She went on to practice obstetrics and gynecology for over three decades in Wisconsin, where she saw firsthand the vital role of family physicians. Her daughter, Dr. Signe Thorpe, ’22, continued the legacy and is a pediatric hematology, oncology, and bone marrow transplant fellow at the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin.
Dr. Suzette Peltier's hooding, 1985.
Dr. Signe Thorpe's hooding, 2022.
Though deeply invested in NDSU, Joe and Norma’s commitment to education extended far beyond any rivalry. In 1999, they established an endowment providing what is now one of the largest scholarship funds for medical students intending to practice rural medicine in North Dakota.
Freddie-Leigh Griffin, a third-year medical student pursuing rural medicine, received
the Peltier Scholarship at a critical time as a young mother.
“We have a 16-month-old and daycare cost is astronomical,” Freddie-Leigh said. “To
cover insurance, tuition and fees, and daycare, we’ve had to take out additional loans.
Having this scholarship hugely decreases our financial burden.”
Inspired by her experience, she’s advocating at the state level for improvements to North Dakota’s Child Care Assistance Program. She and her husband plan to one day create their own endowment.
“Our hope is to give back, to decrease the barriers for young families, especially women and mothers, going into medical school,” she said.
Freddie-Leigh Griffin with her husband, Jordan, whom she credits with making it possible for her to finish medical school.
‘Train Your Own and Grow At Home’
After moving to Fargo, the Peltiers became involved in what is now Sanford Health, with Joe serving on its board and Norma logging more than 3,000 volunteer hours over 45 years. Together, they helped establish Peltier Lodge to support cancer patients.
Through her own medical journey battling leukemia as a child, Signe benefited from her grandparents’ generosity beyond being spoiled with all her favorite foods at every visit.
“In medicine, my grandma taught me there’s always more than one way to help. We definitely need doctors, but also volunteers to provide meals, rides to appointments, and shelter closer to the hospital,” Signe said. “Norma did these things. I learned hospitality from her and how to make the patient experience more comfortable.”
The Peltiers’ lifelong commitment to education and improving the future for all North Dakotans is reflected in the legacy they have left for future physicians.
Joe and Norma Peltier
When Norma passed in 2024, their estate gift to UND SMHS took effect. Intended to support students entering family medicine in rural practices, the Peltier siblings — Keith, Jeff, Suzette, and BettyJo — worked with SMHS Dean Dr. Marjorie Jenkins to determine how the gift could have the greatest impact.
Part of the endowment will support UND’s new Primary Care Accelerated Track (PCAT),
launching in 2028, which will allow rural-bound medical students to complete their
training in three years. Today, nearly half (47% in 2025) of SMHS’s medical doctor
graduates are choosing primary care specialties, including family medicine.
Dr. David Schmitz, Chair of Family & Community Medicine, emphasized the significance
of the Peltiers’ gift for future practitioners.
“Family physicians meet patients’ most immediate needs, from delivering babies to responding to trauma, making them essential to rural healthcare,” he said. “The Peltiers’ generosity is helping us ‘train our own and grow at home,’ a key element in building North Dakota’s healthcare workforce.”
The Peltiers’ generosity is helping us ‘train our own and grow at home,’ a key element in building North Dakota’s healthcare workforce.Dr. David Schmitz
In Their Honor
On August 15, 2025, SMHS dedicated the Joe & Norma Peltier East Atrium. Though Joe and Norma considered credit unnecessary, their names are displayed in the space to honor the couple’s humility, work ethic, and enduring contribution.
Suzette represented her siblings at the dedication, saying, “We’re thrilled because their gift will be working to get family practitioners trained in North Dakota, staying in North Dakota, and that’s exactly what our parents would want.”
