Nelda Irene Kennedy
In the early hours of July 22 a tiny woman with a big heart slipped away to begin her next great adventure. Nelda Irene Rebhahn Hout Kennedy was born August 1, 1927 in Barber, to George Rebhahn and Frieda Haase Rebhahn. They soon moved to Kinsey where she grew up working hard in the sugar beet, corn and potato fields alongside her dad, and picking up agates as she played beside the river. She faced a tough life, but to the end she did it bravely — with her chin up and with a smile.
Mom spent her last years in Charlo, and was preceded in death by her parents, by her first husband Robert Hout, Sr., and then by W.M. (Bill) Kennedy. She also mourned the loss of her son, Ronald Hout, and a good friend of many years, Edward Jensen.
She is survived first by her sisters Glenda (Bud) Muller, Sharon (Orville) Hope, and her little brother Arnold (Liana) Rebhahn. Mom is also survived by her sons Robert (Bonnie) Hout, Charles (Donna) Hout and Melvin (Charlotte, Polly) Hout, as well as her daughters Carolea (O.B.) Hout Matt and Patricia (John) Kennedy Memoli. There are numerous grandchildren, great grandchildren, and her first great great grandson, who will miss their "grandma".
A memorial service is being planned and will be announced. In lieu of flowers please feel free to donate to Watson's Children's Shelter in Missoula as Mom cared so much that children should know they are safe and loved.
Arrangements are pending with Foster & Durgeloh Funeral Home of St. Ignatius.
Ronald Joseph Oldis
POLSON — Ronald Joseph Oldis, 85, of Polson died on Saturday, July 21, 2007 at St. Joseph Hospital in Polson.
Ronald was born Sept. 20, 1921 in Hinton, Iowa to Charles and Ethel Oldis. He grew up and attended schools in Iowa.
He married Lela Gilbertson Myers in Polson.
Ronald served in the U.S. Army during WW II as a Tech Sergeant. After his military discharge, he moved to Polson. He worked at the creamery, at McIntire Motors and at Helmer & Harris Chevrolet/Courtesy Chevrolet.
He served on the Polson City Council for 12 years and the planning board. While serving on the council he saw to it that Polson's first street sweeper was purchased and maintained.
Ronald started his business, "Ronnie's Auto Repair" and continued to operate the business until his retirement.
Ronald was an avid fly fisherman and rock hound. He also enjoyed making turquoise jewelry. He loved to travel south every winter to Quartzite, Ariz.
He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Lela, of Polson and his children — Paul and his wife Suky of Sante Fe, NM and Charlotte Nelson and her husband Alan Jones of La Quinta, CA. He is also survived by his only grandchild, Lisa Marie Oldis of Sante Fe, NM and two sisters, Opal and Marion.
A graveside memorial service with military honors was held Wednesday, July 25, 2007 at Lakeview Cemetery.
Cremation and arrangements are by Grogan Funeral Home & Crematory of Polson.
Ralph Stanley Kroshus
POLSON — Ralph Stanley Kroshus, 86, of Pablo died of natural causes on Monday July 16, 2007, at the Evergreen Health & Rehab Center.
Ralph was born on Aug. 8, 1920, in Iowa. The family moved to Crosby, N.D., and Ralph went to school in Crosby. He joined the U.S. Air Force and was a mechanic during WWII. Ralph was stationed in London, England during the bombings there.
His father taught him how to read blueprints and build houses. He also worked as a hunting and fishing guide in the Bob Marshall Wilderness. Ralph learned how to fly small airplanes, enjoyed working in his workshop building picnic tables and many other crafts.
He was a member of the VFW and the Elks Club.
His parents, one brother and two sons, Leonard and Danny Kroshus, preceded Ralph in death.
He is survived by his wife Dorothy of Ronan; daughters Shirley Brown of Chelan, Wash., Janet Hawkins of Kent, Wash.; brothers Dale of North Dakota, Don of Colorado, Glen of Alaska; a sister, Helen Waters of Texas; eight grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews.
He will be greatly missed by his family and friends. A private family service will be held. Arrangements and cremation are under the direction of Grogan Funeral Home & Crematory.
Helen Gillespie Doty
Helen Gillespie Doty lived 81 beautiful years, and passed on peacefully in her son's home on July 17, 2007.
Born to Paul and Helen Gillespie on March 6, 1926 in St. Paul, Minnesota, the family moved to Little Falls, Minnesota before settling in Missoula in 1937. Helen cherished her growing-up years with her only sibling, Dale, and often recounted many tender stories of their childhood together. An avid horse lover, she regularly shared long bareback rides with her friends up Pattee Canyon on her favorite steed, Tonka.
Helen frequently remarked how blessed she felt to have the same best friends from the sixth grade, and no one ever had a better friend than Helen. She poured herself into every relationship, having the amazing ability to convince each friend and family member they were supremely important and genuinely loved. On par with her warm personality was Helen's eager pursuit of learning and loyal devotion to her family.
After graduating from Hellgate High in 1944, she earned her Bachelors of Science Degree in Microbiology in 1948 from the University of Montana. Halfway through her graduate work at the University of Minnesota, she married Jack Doty on September 3, 1949. Faithfully and selflessly, Helen then devoted her time and skills to helping him earn his Master's Degree and PhD. Commendations for her proficient editing and typing of Jack's innumerable papers were words of praise she always deferred to her husband.
Supportive in every way, Helen was the epitome of a helper and a dedicated mother to her sons. The four men have nothing but admiration for her continual nurturing, patience, and encouragement, as she was often alone in raising them while Jack taught abroad.
Helen loved people. She treasured her membership in various groups, serving others with a warm and welcoming spirit, and interacting gracefully with diverse cultures. Outgoing and organized, Helen found herself involved in a myriad of societies and associations. President of her sorority, Kappa Alpha Theta, she was also the beloved "Little Sister" of Sigma Chi.
In addition to being active in her local P.E.O. chapter, Helen enjoyed the intellectual stimulation of her As You Like It group, the pleasure of her bridge club, and the fellowship of her Hippie Moms meetings. Helen was also a longstanding member of the Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit.
Tutored by a professional French chef, Helen had the remarkable ability to transform even cheese and crackers into a gourmet experience. Her gift of hospitality extended around the globe with stays in Ethiopia, Zambia, Saudi Arabia, and Botswana. Helen entertained and blessed countless new friends and acquaintances during Jack's employment with various overseas universities, causing their time abroad to be not only educational, but also delightful.
Helen's final years were spent in Polson where she lived with her son, John, and his family who were profoundly blessed to enjoy her beautiful smile and sweet spirit each day. She quickly became an integral and important part of their daily lives. Helen took on a deeper appreciation for prayer in her last days, confessed faith in Jesus Christ as her savior, and fell peacefully to sleep with the assurance of where she would awaken.
Helen is preceded in death by: her husband Jack, brother Dale, parents Paul and Helen, and a grandson Seth. Helen is survived by four sons: Chip of Missoula; Paul (and Tina) of Denver, Colorado; Mark (and Laura) of Corvallis; John (and Connie) of Polson; eight grandchildren; brother-in-law Bill Doty of Palm Springs, California; sister-in-law Joan Gillespie of Missoula; and many beloved friends. A memorial service will be held on Thursday, July 26, 2007 at 10 a.m. at the Holy Spirit Episcopal Church, 130 South 6th East, Missoula. Condolences may be sent to the family at www.groganfuneralhome.com.
Stanley Serviss
Stanley Serviss, car connoisseur and a steadfast, light-hearted man, died suddenly July 19, while trimming an unruly cherry tree near the home in St. Ignatius he shared with his partner, Theodora. He was just two months shy of his 70th birthday.
Stan was born Oct. 2, 1937, in Missoula to Edith Bache and Matt Serviss, the second oldest of five children.
He lived briefly in the Seattle area as a child, while his father worked in the shipyards during World War II, but spent most of the next six decades in Missoula. After graduating from high school in 1958, he served in the U.S. Army Reserve from 1959-1963.
He married Shirley Ann Loran in 1960 and they divorced in 1999; she died in 2003.
As a youngster, Stan began his lifelong romance with cars, and worked odd jobs through high school to finance that passion. Although he was a talented athlete as a young man and loved to dance, cars always came first.
He worked first at Mincoff Motors, and began painting cars while employed by H.O. Bell. Stan also worked for WestMont Tractor Company and Four Seasons before being hired as body-shop manager for the DeMarois dealership in Missoula. Along the way, he developed an uncanny eye for mixing color and shaping metal with care and precision.
He retired in the mid 1990s, after injuring his back while working on a vehicle.
Stan marked his life by the cars that he (and his pals) drove; he also had an encyclopedic memory of Missoula families and local history. In both his personal and business dealings, Stan was regarded as "a straight shooter."
His meticulously restored vehicles included his newest love — a car identical to one he had tried to buy as a kid.
But the lasting love of his life — even more enduring than automobiles — was Theodora Niemeyer. They met during social studies class at Missoula County High School.
"I remember he was always goofing off," she says.
In Stanley's version of this story, Theodora asked a mutual friend, Annie Richards, to introduce them. He remembered that she wore a poodle skirt and a big smile when they met.
They dated off and on throughout their first years of high school and then went their separate ways. Forty years later, and thanks to Stan's intrepid courtship, they found each other again. He adopted Theodora's family as his own, and became Opa Stan to four grandchildren.
Together, they traveled to the Netherlands, Ireland and England (Stan's first forays overseas) and throughout the United States. After living together in Kansas City, Mo., for a few years, they bought a log house on five acres near St. Ignatius in October 2002. Until Theodora's retirement in 2005, Stan would spend summers in Montana, tending the park-like grounds of their new home.
Since then, they've shared myriad planting and gardening duties, including harvesting cherries and baking 10 pies together just a week before Stan died.
Although Stan spent much of his last years challenged by chronic pain, he remained buoyant and kind, happy to have Theodora (and his cars) next to him. He also relished the weekly gatherings for coffee with his siblings (although he wasn't always able to attend) and time spent with friends congregating at Marvin Job's shop, and treasured his "best friends" relationship with his brother, Dennis.
He is survived by Theodora and her family: Scott and Goppi of Charlo, and sons Linde and Perry; Michelle of Kansas City; and William and Anne of San Jose, Calif., and their children, Benjamin and Claire; and by his siblings, all of Missoul: Patricia and Pete Vann, Bruce and Carol Serviss, Dennis and Carol Serviss, and Renee and Doug Touchette.
The family is holding a private memorial service July 29. Stan's many friends are encouraged to remember him by eating a slice of pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, sipping a can of ice-cold Pepsi, cruisin' in their favorite car, and listening to some of that old-time rock 'n roll.
John Wesley Frazer
John Wesley Frazer (Wes) passed away peacefully in the presence of loved ones, in Concord, CA on July 14, 2007.
He was born December 31, 1933 to George and Hazel Frazer of Stevensville. Wes graduated from Stevensville High School and then went on to Washington State University where he acquired his degree in Veterinary Medicine. After receiving his degree he moved to Polson to start his veterinary practice.
He treated animals for 33 years and was fondly referred to as "Doc". He always tried to help people struggling to make ends meet and treated many animals for little or no pay. Since the area had no Humane Society, he acted in its place until one was established. He was able to place animals in homes and with the elderly so they had companionship. He donated to and was involved with many charities for animals and birds. He would always make an anonymous donation to the Humane Society in the name of the animals that passed away in his care.
Wes was always looking to help in any way he could. He spent a number of summers assembling and placing a large number of blue bird homes around the Flathead Valley area with his children when their population was declining. His love of animals was also never ending. He became a leader in avian medicine. It was not uncommon to find bald eagles, golden eagles, great horned owls, seagulls, or many other birds in his clinic. Most of the time the care for these animals was paid for out of his own pocket.
He was never one to turn away an animal if it had the possibility of being saved. Most of the birds he worked on were released back into the wild. Some of the eagles too injured to be released back into the wild were sent to federal zoos to be used to help educate people about this beautiful bird. One of my most fond memories was raising a young family of woodpeckers that had been brought into the clinic. All of the birds grew up and flew away but one came back to nest at the family home for many years.
Wes loved the Polson area and spent as much time as possible golfing and boating on the lake. After a very serious boating accident in 1966 involving a number of boys from Missoula he helped set up a system for marking the underwater rocks. After writing to the State of Montana about the markings he took on the responsibility himself for marking the underwater hazards and maintaining the safety lights during the summer months. For years he replaced the lights and their batteries at his own cost so no one else would suffer the same fate as the boys from Missoula.
His love of the water did not end there. He built his first sail boat "Lady Bug" and soon became a regular Sunday morning racer. As the years went by the boats got a little bigger but his competitiveness never changed. Racing was as much work as it was play but it was the challenge of the lake that drew him to it. He definitely was character and had quite the dry sense of humor.
Later in his years he began to suffer from Alzheimer's and this terrible disease totally disabled him. His children hope he is now sailing his boat and surrounded by all his animals he loved so much.
He is survived by his son, Frank Frazer and wife Amy, and their sons, Logan (5), Nick (10), and TJ (12); his daughter Renee Horat (Frazer) and husband Todd, and their children, Jake (4) and Karmen (5); sister Gladys McKay, 92, and her family of Missoula; brother Richard Frazer, 83, of Stevensville; and Geri and Lynn Welch, Bill and Alex Welch, Jackie Gootee (Welch)and husband John, Alison and Georgia, whom he always considered family
A memorial/reception will be held at his home on Kerr Dam Road in Polson on August 4th at 5 p.m. In lieu of flowers please send donations to the Humane Society at HSWM, c/o donations, at 5930 Hwy 93 South Missoula, MT 59804
Please bring any pictures you have of Wes. Contact frazerkids@yahoo.com for more info.
Randolph Boyce Ingram
Former Polson mayor Randy Ingram, 33, passed away July 18 in Polson.
Randy was born in Missoula on June 3, 1974. He attended elementary and high school in Polson. Randy attended the University of Montana and graduated in 1996 with a degree in Business Administration. Randy was very proud of being an alum and loved to attend Griz football games and tailgate.
In August of 1996 he married the love of his life, Brooke Dahl. They made their home in Polson where Randy wanted to live his life and raise his family.
Randy was employed at First Citizens Bank as an Assistant Vice President, commercial loan officer, and was on the Board of Directors. Randy ran for Polson mayor at the age of 27 and was elected in 2002 and re-elected in 2005. He served as mayor for five years, accomplishing many great things for the City of Polson.
Randy was a true public servant at heart. He wanted more than anything to serve his community and the people he loved. He was always striving to make Polson a better place for everyone. Randy will always be remembered as a positive, energetic, honest, fair and highly intelligent man. His easygoing, compassionate personality drew people of all ages.
Randy was very active in the community through his involvement as a Director of the Polson Chamber of Commerce, Lake County Community Development, President of Mission Mountain Enterprises, Director of Polson Loaves and Fishes, Rotary Club, BPOE, Masonic Lodge, Shriners, Shrine Scooter Patrol, golf league, bowling league and Thursday night golf with buddies. Some of Randy's proudest accomplishments were being awarded Citizen of the Year by BPOE and the first ever Outstanding Leadership Award by the Polson Chamber of Commerce.
Randy loved the outdoors and was very active with fishing, hunting, golf, boating, shooting, skiing and snowmobiling. Randy loved to socialize with friends whether for a BBQ, a game of pool, fantasy football or a poker night with the boys.
Randy leaves behind a family who adored him and will miss him greatly — his beloved wife Brooke, their beautiful son Evan (Bug) and an unborn son.
Also surviving him are his parents William and Jolanda Ingram of Polson; his in-laws George and Dianne Dahl of Elmo, who loved him like their own son; his brothers, Dwane (JoAnn) Ingram of Polson, Thomas (Marie) and Joseph Baker, both of Missoula; his sisters Sherrie (Fred) McFarland of Polson and Theresa (Bruce) Wicker of Oklahoma. Randy is also survived by two aunts, many nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephews. He is also survived by his beloved four-legged Remi and too many wonderful and dear friends to mention.
Everyone loved Randy and he will never be forgotten. He will always be remembered for all of his accomplishments and his friendliness. He will live on in memory through the legacy of his children.
First Citizens Bank in Polson has started a trust fund in memory of Randy to honor his two sons. Please call 883-4358 for further information.
In lieu of flowers please make donations to Polson Shriners.
Memorial services will be held on Friday, July 27, 2007 at the Polson Country Club driving range at 11 a.m. Golf attire is requested.
Heather Leigh-May Adams
Bozeman - Heather Leigh-May Adams was born July 16th, 2007 and went to be with the Ancestors on July 21, 2007 in Bozeman Deaconess Hospital. Even though Heather was with us for only a short time, she will remain in our hearts and lives forever.
Survivors include her parents Brendan Adams and Jami Piapot; her brothers D'Shawn and Jamian all of Bozeman; grandparents Clete and Vicki LaForge of Bozeman, Darrell and Lisa Piapot of Pablo and Andrea Adams of Pablo; uncles Gabe, Vincent and Calvin Shepard, DJ (Jule) Piapot, Jordan St. Clair, Kyle, Cody and Seth Stensgar, Angelo Gonzalez, Dustin (Brandy) Guardipee and Gavin Guardipee; aunties Isabelle Pablo, Donella Piapot, Deanna Azure, Lisona and Paige Gonzalez, Pheonix and Carmalita Matt, Angela Guardipee and Colleen Tenas; great grandparents Louis (Gert) Adams, Carol Wood, Joe and Patti Piapot and Vic (Judy) Matt and numerous cousins.
Heather was preceded in death by her brother Dayami Piapot, great grandma Nadine Adams, Auntie Heather Shepard Adams, her yaya Kelly Matt-Gonzalez, uncle Travis Guardipee, grandpa Jamie Guardipee and her Tupye' Margaret Matt Finley.
Pallbearers were Andrew Castro, Nate Cutfinger, and Nick and Michael Assinaboine. Honorary pallbearers were Gabe, Vinny and Calvin Shepard, Jordan St. Clair, Kyle, Seth and Cody Stensgar and all close friends and family.
The wake was held at the Longhouse in St. Ignatius starting last Sunday, July 22nd at noon with the Rosary recited Monday evening at 8 p.m. with the funeral held Tuesday at 11 a.m. Burial followed in the Adams Family Cemetery, Valley Creek, where Heather was laid to rest next to Heather, Viola, grandma Nade, Michael and Marie.
Arrangements were handled by Foster & Durgeloh Funeral Home of St. Ignatius.