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Lyle Arthur Bourassa
Lyle Arthur Bourassa, 81, of Helena, formerly of Eureka, went to be with the Lord on July 14, 2003, at Cooney Convalescent home.
Lyle was born March 2, 1922, in Madoc, Mont., to the late Aurora and J.B. Bourassa. In 1940, he graduated from Flaxville High School and on April 3, 1943, he married
Opal Flickinger of Opheim, while stationed at Luke Field AFB near Phoenix. He served in the U. S. Air Force during World War II and after discharge returned to Helena and worked for the Mountain States Telephone & Telegraph Co. for 13 years.
Lyle and Opal moved to Palm Desert, Calif., in 1970 where they were actively involved in the Disabled American Veterans Organization. In 1985, they moved to Eureka to be near family. Lyle loved to fish, hunt, and spent many hours tinkering in his garage. He and Opal enjoyed many years traveling south for the winter months. In 1997, they moved into Mountain View Manor of Eureka, and recently were moved to Cooney Convalescent Home in Helena.
Lyle was preceded in death by his loving wife, Opal, (February 2003), his parents and youngest sister, Luella. Survivors include his daughters, Barbara (Neil) Nelson of Libby and their children Kyle and Glen (Tyann), Lyla (Jack) Stuart and their son John (Susan) and Cheri (John) Larson and their children Nick, Megan, Alese, and Tim, both of Helena; his son Ken (Melinda) Bourassa of Victor and their children Joe (Sarah) and Travis; brothers Jean Bourassa of Mesa, Ariz.; Omer Bourassa of Pine Top, Ariz., ; sisters Delia Osborne (Dave) of Whitefish, Annette Mitchke (Mick) of Pine Top, Ariz., Eileen Schagunn (Alvin) of Poplar; three great-grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews.
A vigil will be held at St. Marys Catholic Church on Sunday, July 20 at 7 p.m. The funeral Mass in celebration of Lyles life will be held at St. Marys Catholic Church on Monday, July 2l, at 10 a.m., followed by graveside services with military honors at the Montana State Veterans cemetery .A reception in the Church Hall of St. Marys will complete the services.
The family asks memorials be sent to the Disabled American Veterans Assn., National Service Foundation, 3725 Alexandria Pike, Cold Spring, KY 41076. Local arrangements were entrusted to Hagler- Anderson Mortuary.
Wallace E. Torpen
Wallace E. Torpen, 79, of East Helena, formerly of Libby, passed away quietly at his home surrounded by his family late Sunday evening, July 13, 2003.
Wallace, fourth child of Hilda S. (Clemetson) and Edwin O. Torpen, was born on Nov. 14, 1927. He was baptized in the Lutheran Church Nov. 27, 1927. Wallace attended Uland and Comertown schools, graduating from high school in May of 1943. He entered the U.S. Army in Jan. of 1945 and was discharged in Aug. of 1946.
Upon his discharge he worked the family farm southeast of Comertown and several other farms in the area until he moved to Libby in 1956. He went to work for St. Regis Paper Company where he worked in the maintenance shop until he retired in 1990. Wallace never married
. In December 1999, Wallace moved to Helena to be near his relatives.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by three brothers and one sister.
Survivors include a brother, Reynold Torpen of Auborn, Wash., and a sister, Alice Westrup of East Helena. There are also several nieces and nephews.
Military graveside services will be conducted by the Lewis and Clark Veterans Council Friday, July 18, at 10 a.m. at the Montana State Veterans cemetery at Fort Harrison. Family prefers memorials to Hospice of St. Peters, 2475 Broadway, Helena, MT 59601. Local arrangements were entrusted to Hagler-Anderson Mortuary.
Dorothy (Shelton) Moore
Dorothy Lee (Shelton) Moore, age 83, of Helena, died Thursday, July 10, 2003, at Big Sky Care Center.
She was born on Feb. 1, 1920, in Butte to Lee and Mae (Bell) Shelton. She received her degree from Montana State Normal College in 1940 and worked as a country school teacher. Dorothy married
Durward Moore Sept. 17, 1940, in Miles City. She enjoyed knitting, reading and lapidary, and was a member of DAR and Eastern Star.
Dorothy was preceded in death by her husband in 1976 and an infant child, Elizabeth.
She is survived by children William Moore of Helena, Robert Moore of Las Vegas, Jim Moore of Helena, Dale Moore of Helena, Lee Malchesky of Libby, and Miriam Ortiz of Helena; 12 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. today, Saturday, July 12, at Retz Funeral Home.
June B. Hamilton
Choteau - June B. Hamilton, age 74, a longtime Choteau resident, died of complications of lung cancer at Teton Medical Center Saturday, July 26, 2003.
June was born in Boulder on June 13, 1929. She was the youngest of the six children of Harry and Agnes Mikkelson. June graduated from Jefferson County High School in 1947, and spent the next year working as a telephone operator in Helena.
June married
James Hamilton in Boulder on June 6, 1948. They moved to Choteau where Jim worked as a mechanic at N & H Implement. Eventually, they became co-owners and the name changed to H & H Implement. In addition to working part time at H & H, June worked for the A.S.C.S. and the Hanusa Agency (later the Westmont Agency.) Following Jim's retirement from H & H, June worked full time for the A.S.C.S. until her retirement in 1991.
June filled her "spare time" following her kids to swim meets, track meets, football games, wrestling matches and music festivals.
She liked to bowl and play golf, but she really liked playing cards, especially bridge, pitch and cribbage. June was a great cook, and was known especially for her filled cookies and lemon meringue pies.
June and Jim were blessed with four children: Jeanine, Jody, Mike and Erin. They survive her along with spouses Jay Cole of Helena and Matt Jones of Spokane; six grandchildren and one great-grandson. A sister, Pat, of Seal Beach, Calif., also survives, along with many nieces and nephews.
June was preceded in death by her husband, Jim; her parents; three sisters and a brother.
Her memorial service is 11 a.m. Wednesday, July 30, at United Methodist Church in Hamilton, followed by a reception. Cremation has taken place under the direction of Gorder Funeral Home.
The family requests that memorials be sent to the Choteau Lions Club Swimming Pool, c/o Bob Nauck, P.O. Box 153, Choteau, MT 59422 or to the Choteau United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 108, Choteau, MT 59422.
Alice Ann Mlekush
Alice Ann Mlekush died July 14, 2003, at home in the arms of her loving husband Don.
Alice was born, Jan. 4, 1936, in Anderson, Ind., to the late Clarence and Mary Coonrod. Alice was the middle child of five siblings. Growing up, the family moved many times, settling in Richmond, Ind., in 1947.
Alice graduated from Richmond High School in 1954. Alice went on to nursing school graduating from The Good Samaritan School of Nursing, Dayton, Ohio, in 1957.
After graduation, Alice began working as a registered nurse at a hospital in Colorado Springs, Colo. From there Alice moved to Bozeman and began working at Bozeman Deaconess Hospital. In 1958, Alice accepted an invitation to go on a blind, double-date, with a female co-worker, her husband and the man who would later become her husband, Donald Mlekush. Donald was in the Air Force and after five years of courtship, which included long times away from each other due to Dons military service, Don and Alice were married
at the Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Bozeman on Aug. 17, 1963.
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Together Don and Alice moved to Miami, Fla., where Alice worked at the Dade County Hospital. While living in Miami, Don and Alice were blessed with the first of three children, Mark, on Jan. 30, 1965. Later that year Don and Alice would move back to Montana, settling in Helena. Alice began working at St. Johns Hospital and work there until it closed. Don and Alice were again blessed, having their second child, Donna, on Jan. 31, 1968. Just a little over a year later, Don and Alice were again blessed, having their third child, Michael, on Sept. 14, 1969.
Don and Alice moved the family to their newly built home in the Helena valley and now with a family of five, three of whom were children, Alice decided to take a leave of absence from her profession as a registered nurse, to raise her children, full-time.
Alice opened a day care out of the home and began what became a journey, that would not only provide children with a caring and loving environment, but that would see her become a defining figure in many of their lives. Mama Alice was created. For the next 19 years, Alice helped guide, educate, entertain, and love many, many children. Some of the children were there for a short time while others were with Alice from birth to ages of 10 and up. Alice provided such a loving and caring environment, that when times came up and parents needed to have their children cared for, for extended periods of time, many parents entrusted their children to Alice for days and weeks at a time, knowing that they would be treated as if they were her own child.
After making sure her children, Mark, Donna and Mike, got through high school and set a path for life, Alice went back to her chosen profession as a registered nurse. Alice began work at Big Sky Care Center in the spring of 1991. At Big Sky, Alice, with her motherly instincts, not only took care of her patients, but, and in some ways more importantly, took care of the other staff. Alice was always available for her patients - that was what she was trained for, that was her job. But what was not her job or not a job requirement was her ability and willingness to give everyone she met a piece of the love and goodness she had within her. Alice retired from Big Sky in 2000 due to her health.
Alice was preceded in death by both her parents, Clarence and Mary Coonrod, her two sisters, Eileen Gatz and Sister Mother Michael Mary Coonrod, and her father-in-law Andrew Mlekush Jr.
Besides her loving husband, Donald, Alice is survived by her three children, Mark Mlekush, Donna Hofferber and Michael Mlekush, and her daughter-in-law, Tanya Mayer-Mlekush; and two grandchildren, Nicholas Hofferber, and Laura Hennings, all of Helena. Alice is also survived by her two brothers, John Coonrod and his wife Fran, of Kettering, Ohio, and Donald Coonrod and his wife, Betty, of Lexington, Ky.; her mother-in-law, Edna Mlekush, and a sister-in-law, Linda Mlekush, both of Big Timber; a brother-in-law, Kenneth Mlekush and his wife, Paula, of Greensboro, N.C., and many, nieces and nephews. It must be said that Alice is also survived by all her extended family of co-workers at Big Sky, the many children she cared for and their parents.
It is not an exaggeration to say, that on July 14, 2003, our world lost a truly beautiful, loving and caring person who always put others before herself.
The Gift of an Angel
God took one pair of wings,
One halo heart of gold,
Two eyes that held compassion
For others, young and old.
Two hands to offer kindness,
Always putting others first.
He wrapped it up
With tender care
And called this gift a Nurse
A Wife and Our Mother,
Our Magical Angel,
Alice Ann Mlekush
Jan. 4, 1936 - July 14, 2003
Vigil services will be Sunday, July 20, at 7 p.m. from Hagler-Anderson Chapel. Funeral Mass will be celebrated Monday, July 21, 2003, 11 a.m. from the Cathedral of Helena. Interment services will follow at Forestvale cemetery. Family prefers memorial to that of donors choice.
Edna Gunderson
Edna (Arensmeyer) Gunderson, 76, of Choteau, began her journey home on Friday, July 18, 2003, surrounded by her loved ones.
Edna was born July 1, 1927, to Freida and Ernest Arensmeyer in Choteau, where she was raised with many brothers and sisters whom she dearly loved. She married
Harold Gunderson in 1947, and they have five children. She attended MSU, majoring in journalism, before moving to the farm in Power. There they started their family. In 1960, she and Harold moved their family to Havre, where together they established the Hi-Line Herald newspaper and she pursued her career in journalism. Politics were her passion, and she loved her native state of Montana.
She had numerous accomplishments in her life. She edited, directed and published the book, "Grit, Guts and Gusto, " she served as president of the State Democratic Womens Committee, was secretary of the Demo-cratic Central Committee, was a delegate to the Democratic National Presidential Convention in Chicago in 1968, and later was elected to the Montana Legislature as a representative for Hill County. She remained in Helena where she was employed in state government, first for the stenographic pool, then the Department of Transportation. She retired soon after, and returned to her hometown of Choteau to be closer to her family and friends.
She enjoyed gardening, crossword puzzles, playing cards and a good conversation (you would always find a pot of coffee on at Ednas house). Most of all, she enjoyed her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She loved family gatherings.
Survivors include children Sonya Gunderson of Bellingham, Wash., Karen Perry of Missoula, Marsha Daulton of Great Falls, Linda West of Everett, Wash., and her only son, Gary Gunderson and his wife, Debby, of Power; her grandchildren Jennifer, Kelsey, Stacy, Jesse, Jaron, Nathan, Jerianne, Judy, Allison, Sara, Kali, Amanda, Jacob and Ryan. She was also blessed with four great-grandchildren: Sierah, Avery, Justis and Aubrey. Her surviving sisters include Dorothy Cook and her husband, Eldon, of Choteau, Esther Fuller and her husband, John, of Apache Junction, Ariz., and Ruth Bloedel and her husband, Earl, of Billings; a brother, James Arensmeyer and his wife, Barbara, of Choteau; and a sister-in-law, Judy Strickling of Osage, Wyo.
She has joined her brothers Reinhardt, Bud, Bob and Donny in Heaven. We miss you Mom!
You've been a wonderful mother and grandmother,
And we've always loved being with you
As far back as any of us can remember.
You were always there to be our friend,
To spoil us a little,
And love us a lot.
Thats why youll always fill
The empty space in our hearts,
You will always be our
"Guardian Angel"
A celebration of her life will be 1 p.m. Wednesday, July 23, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Choteau. Cremation has taken place with burial of ashes in Choteau. Gorder Funeral Home is in care of the arrangements. Memorials can be made to Choteau Boys Home or Trinity Lutheran Church of Choteau.
Lori Lynn Minnehan-Darr
Douglas, Wyo. - - Lori Lynn Minnehan-Darr, age 48, of Douglas, Wyo., died Wednesday, July 9, 2003, in Casper, Wyo.
She was born Jan. 1, 1955, in Shelby, the daughter of John and Ruth (Carlson) Minnehan. She graduated from Havre High School in 1973, then attended Montana State University, where she earned a bachelors degree in agricultural economics.
On June 10, 1978, She married
Carey Douglas Kelly Darr in Bozeman. In 1983, the couple moved to Hobbs, N.M., then to Casper in 1989, and settled in Douglas in 1993.
Survivors include her mother, Ruth Minnehan of Bozeman; husband, Kelly Darr of Douglas; three children, Jeremiah Darr, Casey Darr and Whitney Darr, all of Douglas; and two brothers, Joe Minnehan of Chester and Tom Minnehan of Kazakhstan.
Services were held on Monday, July 14, with burial in the Douglas Park cemetery. Contributions are suggested to the Lori Lynn Minnehan-Darr Memorial Fund in care of the Converse County Bank, P.O. Box 689, Douglas, Wyo., 82633.
Hector Earl (Peck) Rodgers
COLUMBUS - - Hector Earl (Peck) Rodgers passed away Saturday, July 12, 2003, at his home in Columbus, Mont.
He was born on Aug. 26, 1922, in Seattle the son of Maggie Abel and Charles J. Rodgers. He attended grade school and high school in Billings and attended the University of Montana in Missoula before WWII. He graduated from Montana State College in Bozeman in 1950 with a degree in animal science.
He served four years in the Army Air Corps, two of those years in the Southwest Pacific. During his service career, he received the Presidential Unit Citation with four oak leaf clusters, his silver wings, Philippine Defense Ribbon, Southwest Pacific Ribbon with four battle stars and a Purple Heart.
After graduation from college, he worked for the USDA for five years. He spent the balance of his working years with the Yellowstone Bank of Columbus, Mont., retiring in 1983 as senior vice president. For many years, he owned the 7/7 Ranch Co. located in the Bull Mountains north of Pompeys Pillar. The ranch was sold in 1992.
Mr. Rodgers married
Violet Pfaff in 1943. She preceded him in death on July 30, 1988. He was also preceded in death by his parents and three sisters.
He helped organize little guy football in Columbus and coached for 10 years. He announced local football games for over 30 years and served as secretary for the Stillwater County Republican Central Committee for several years. He was instrumental in getting a private nursing home in Columbus. He served as chairman of the Montana Bankers Association Agricultural Credit Conference in 1967-68. He enjoyed hunting, fishing, playing golf and working in his garden.
He is survived by four daughters, Mrs. Lynn (Larry) Redfield of Kalispell, Mrs. Pam (Rick) Hulbert of Helena, Mrs. Pat (Bob) Castleberry of Laurel and Mrs. Cindy (Grant) Larsen of Forsyth. He is also survived by three grandchildren, Stewart (Shannon) Redfield, Stacey Castleberry and Rodger Hulbert; and two sisters, Mrs. Roberta Reichenberg and Mrs. Polly Kirkness, both of Billings.
Graveside services with military honors will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday in Mountainview cemetery in Columbus. Smith Funeral Chapel-Columbus is in charge. No visitation.
Valerie J. Kast
Valerie J. "Nana" Kast, 57, of White Sulphur Springs, passed away Thursday, July 24, 2003, at St. Peter's Hospital in Helena.
Valerie was born March 21, 1945, in Milwaukee, Wis., to John Thomas and Jeanette E. (Burr) Vaughn. She graduated from Columbia Academy in Columbia, Wis. Valerie moved to Montana 25 years ago.
She was a member of the Christian Missionary Alliance Church in White Sulphur Springs. She enjoyed cross-stitching, crocheting and needlepoint. Valerie loved to play baseball with her grandkids.
On Oct. 9, 1993, she married
Robert E. Kast in White Sulphur Springs. Valerie is survived by her husband, Bob; her mother, Jeanette Vaughn; her son, Shawn and Ardy Todd and their son, Jeremiah; her daughter, Michie and Brad West and their sons, Scottie and Whitley, all of White Sulphur Springs. She is also survived by numerous other grandchildren.
Funeral services will be at 2 p.m., Monday, July 28, 2003, at the Christian Missionary Alliance Church with Rev. Kristi Bummer officiating. Graveside committal will follow in Mayn cemetery. Twichel Funeral Home assisted the family with the services.
