Miscellaneous Montana Obituaries

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1-5-2000

Tyrell Jason Malatare, 19, passed away in Sagle, Idaho, on Saturday, Jan. 1, 2000.
Memorial services will be conducted at 2 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 6, in Coffelt's Moon Chapel in Sandpoint, Idaho
Tyrell was born in Helena on Jan. 4, 1980, the son of Ray L. and Janet Malatare. He started school in Helena and moved to Sandpoint in 1992. He graduated from Sandpoint High School in 1998. He played high school football and was a member of the 1998 Sandpoint State Championship team. He had played the tuba in the Sandpoint High School band.
He had worked at Safeway for four years after school and also installing telephone cable. He was attending North Idaho College and was a former Boy Scout.

Ethel D. Schenck died with her family at her side at St. Peter's Hospital in Helena on Jan. 2, 2000, following a short illness.
She was born on Dec. 28, 1918, in Conrad to Olaf and Agnes Gunderson, immigrants from Norway and Finland. She lived in Shelby much of her life. She attended schools there and upon graduation from Shelby High School in 1935 was employed as a legal secretary in the law office of Cedor B. Aronow.
Ethel married Donald W. Schenck on June 23, 1941. She later worked at Annis and Woldvedt Accounting in Shelby. She was also executive secretary to independent oil producer, William Fulton. In 1972 Ethel moved with her husband to Helena where she became Chief of the Mineral Leasing Bureau of the Department of State Lands until retiring in 1982, and her husband served as elected Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge A.F. & A.M. of Montana.
Ethel's life was centered around her family and her church. Her compassion and commitment to the needs of others superceded all other concerns in a lifetime of giving and caring for family and friends. She deeply touched the hearts of everyone she met.
Ethel enjoyed gardening, camping, traveling and spending time with her grandchildren. She devoted a large part of her life to her church, as a volunteer congregational secretary of St. Luke's Lutheran Church in Shelby for over 28 years and as a member of Our Redeemer's Lutheran Church in Helena for the past 27 years where she was a devoted office volunteer and a member of Rebecca Circle and Altar Guild.
She was a member of Shelby Chapter No. 113 of the Order of Eastern Star, Sapphira Temple of the Daughters of the Nile of Helena and the Treasure State Wheelers Chapter of the Montana State Good Sam R.V. Club.
Ethel was preceded in death by her parents and her two brothers, Julius and Arthur.
She is survived by her husband and by her sons and daughters-in-law: Melvin J. and Hien Schenck and granddaughters, Kristine and Erika of San Francisco and Clayton L. and Kathy Schenck and granddaughter, Tiffany of Helena. She is also survived by numerous nephews and nieces, cousins and brothersin-law and sisters-in-law.
A memorial service celebrating the life of Ethel Schenck will be held at Our Redeemer's Lutheran Church (1400 Stuart, at intersection with Henderson), on Friday, Jan. 7, 11 a.m. with Rev. Loren Gustafson officiating. A lunch will immediately follow the service. Cremation has taken place and final interment will be at the Montana State Veteran's Cemetery at a later date.
Memorials are suggested to Our Redeemer's Lutheran Church, 1400 Stuart Street, Helena, Mont. 59601 or to a charity of the donor's choice.

James Walter "Lucky'' Black, age 55, passed away in Missoula on Dec. 26, 1999, of natural causes. Lucky was born in Kalispell on July 10, 1944, to Hugh Black and Margaret (James) Black.
They owned and operated St. Mary Lodge and St. Mary Enterprises at the East Gate to Glacier National Park. It was their custom to work with the entire family at St. Mary Lodge during the summers, after which the children returned to St. Paul, Minn., for school each autumn.
Lucky attended St. Mark's Grade School and St. Thomas Military Academy until his graduation from high school in 1962. He was a long time parishioner of St. Mark's Parish. He attended St. Thomas College in St. Paul, but interrupted his studies to join the army in 1964. He emerged honorably and unscathed from the army after two years of service.
Lucky resumed his studies at Assumption Abbey in Richardton, N.D. There, during a study break, he met his future wife, Jeanne Forster and they were eventually married in St. Paul in the spring of 1969.
They spent the next few summers, and sometimes entire years, with their children in the family business at St. Mary. Lucky cooked, worked in the general store, managed the filling station and served as winter caretaker. His heart and soul were bound up in St. Mary and the Black family business. With the exception of the time he spent in military service, Lucky was never far from St. Mary.
During this period, the family established a home in Whitefish. Winter trips to Mexico and Florida were a particular joy to Lucky. He also worked seasonal jobs in the Whitefish area including work on Big Mountain during the ski season.
Although their marriage ended in 1996, Lucky and Jeanne remained friends and continued to share the joy they found in their children.
Lucky received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Montana in 1992. The degree was the culmination of a lifelong dream. He was very proud of his degree and was grateful to his parents and the others who helped him achieve it.
It was truly appropriate that the degree was in the field of biology. Always at home in the outdoors, Lucky was never happier than when he was fishing. While growing up in St. Paul, Lucky made yearly trips to the family house in Redington Beach, Fla. He always returned deeply tanned and laden with various animals for `` show and tell'' at St. Mark's.
Lucky had many friends in Montana and Minnesota, all of whom were deeply touched by his dynamic influence. To know him was to take on a lifetime affection. Whether he was fishing in the park or on the Blackfeet Reservation with his children, snowboarding on Big Mountain with his friends, hunting throughout western Montana, singing and playing guitar late into the night, or befriending a stray animal, Lucky will always be a fixture in our memories. Next time you walk through the woods or by a trout stream, think of Lucky!
Lucky was preceded in death by his father, Hugh O. Black of St. Mary.
He is survived by two daughters and a son-in-law, Michelle and Bob Goodwine of Livingston and Willow Black of Whitefish; four sons, Jerry Black, Zack Black, Hugh C. Black and Joe Luger, all of Whitefish; two grandchildren, Chaz and Baily Goodwine of Livingston; his mother, Margaret Black of St. Mary; two brothers and sisters-in-law, Hugh M. and Mary Grace Black of Helena and Roscoe and Susan Black of St. Mary; sisters and brothers-in-law, Patsy and Bob Huberty of St. Paul, Terry Cosgrove of St. Paul and Sally and Terry Welder of Kalispell; numerous nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles and cousins.
Services have been held in Kalispell. Committal service will be held in St. Mary in the spring.
Family suggests memorials to Samaritan House, P.O. Box 592, Kalispell, Mont. 59903 or to the Montana Veterans Home, P.O. Box 250, Columbia Falls, Mont. 59912.
Arrangements and cremation under the direction of Johnson Mortuary and Crematory.

2-13-2000

Wesley Samuel Blanchard, son of Barbara and John Blanchard, the 13th child in a family of 14, was born in Fairview, Mont. on Jan. 1, 1922. He went to his eternal rest following a heart attack on Feb. 5, 2000 in Helena, Mont.
Wesley was educated in Fairview schools and after graduation joining the C.C.C.s in order to help support his family. There he became accomplished in radio technology before enlisting in the U.S. Navy early in World War II. He was assigned to the battleship USS North Carolina where he was a radar specialist. At the end of the war, he enrolled in Montana State College to study electrical engineering. Upon completing his education, he was employed by `` Ma Bell'' where he eventually supervised the installation of the microwave relay system in the state of Montana. When the offices of U.S. West were moved to Denver, Wes took the option of retiring rather than leaving the Helena area.
Wes was a born naturalist, a powerful swimmer, ice skater and an avid fisherman. Even as a young Boy Scout, he roamed the hills around Fairview studying nature, even gathering honey from wild bee trees. This hobby led him into photography, doing his own developing and finishing. He would often sit for hours in very uncomfortable places waiting for the exact moment to snap the perfect shot of wildlife. He was a member of the Audubon Society and often showed his collection of slides of birds in their native habitats. His slides of animals, flowers and scenic views were equally outstanding. At one time, he took up horticulture, propagating and developing new strains of plants under fluorescent grow lights. With his `` ham'' radio station, Wes enjoyed making contacts around the world.
While in Helena, he attended the First Presbyterian Church. He loved to sing and added his rich bass voice to the choir for many years.
Wes was preceded in death by his parents, six brothers and four sisters. He is survived by two sisters, Evelyn Tirsell of Indianapolis and Ruth Parke of Spokane; one brother, Dr. John Blanchard of Portland, Ore.; and several nieces and nephews.
Funeral services will be conducted from the First Presbyterian Church (corner of 11th Avenue and Ewing Street) on Monday, Feb. 14 at 2:30 p.m. with Pastor Jack Terry officiating. Interment will be in the Fairview Cemetery in Fairview, ND. Services under the direction of Hagler-Anderson Mortuary. Memorials may be given to the First Presbyterian Church, 535 Ewing St., Helena, MT 59601.

George A. Walton, 73, of Columbia Falls died peacefully on Thursday evening, Feb. 10, 2000, at the Montana Veterans' Home. He was born Aug. 16, 1926 in Puyallup, Wash., the son of Jack and Sally Walton. George convinced his parents to allow him to enlist in the Navy one year prior to the required age, serving his country during World War II in the Pacific.
He came to the Columbia Falls area after his discharge from the Navy and began a long love affair with the mountains of Montana. He worked for a time at Stoltz lumber and later at The Blue Moon Night Club and Rex's Night Club. In the late 50s, he became the owner and operator of the Paul Bunyan Night Club. He operated it until ill health forced him to retire and sell the bar in 1989.
George will be remembered lovingly for his sense of humor, his generosity and friendly personality. George's family would like to express their gratefulness to the many friends that made his life so very special.
He was preceded in death by his parents, his two brothers and his baby sister. He is survived by his brother, Frank `` Babe'' Walton of Las Vegas, Nev.; daughters, Marjorie `` Babe'' Walton of Helena, Mary Lou Grigg and her husband, Floyd, of Columbia Falls; granddaughter, Nicolle Arneson and husband Monti, and their children, Bryce and Blake Arneson, all of Columbia Falls; granddaughter Tara Harvey and her husband, Russ, and their children, Justin and McKenna of Columbia Falls; grandson Mike Grigg, and his wife, Kim, and their daughter, Abbey, all of Tonopah, Nev.; and grandson Jason Herman and his fiance, Karla, and children, Cassandra, Shay and Amanda, all of Kalispell.
Friends may pay their respects beginning Monday morning at the Columbia Mortuary. Funeral services will be Tuesday at 10 a.m. at the Columbia Mortuary. Military honors and graveside services will follow at the Woodlawn Cemetery of Columbia Falls.
Memorials may be given to the Montana Veteran's Home of Columbia Falls or to the North Valley Extended Care Unit of Whitefish.