When my Aunt Dian Marcella Erickson married Floyd Nick Boutrous in 1961, she brought into the family an incredible group of folk. Energetic, smart, and quite different than the quiet, stoic Skandis of the Ericksons and the Nelsons. A breath of fresh air swept in and Dian gained a mother in-law by the name of Della Nassif Boutrous. I have to think Della was quite happy to have the beautiful Dian in the family.

My memories are clear of my Uncle Floyd's mom, Mother Della Nassif Boutrous. “Queen of the Attiyeh’s" as she was known, sitting at the head of the table of so many family Lebanese dinners I attended. Fun and good food was the measure of the day. I met many of the Boutrous, Nemer, Nicola and Nassif family members over the years. Exciting times for me especially when I was a kid.

I was never fortunate to meet her husband Attas Fares Boutrous Sr., Floyd’s father, who passed in 1944. He like Della was born in Ain Arab, Lebanon in 1882. Ain Arab is a small village in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon. It lies in the shadow of the Biblical Mount Hermon, and is the headwaters for the Jordan River.

An article on Della from March 8th, 1970 published in the Mandan N.D. Morning Pioneer.