Trust When It's Needed Most
Since 1956, Michelotti-Sawyers Mortuary, together with our dedicated staff, has been serving the community of Billings and the greater Yellowstone County area. We are experts in creating meaningful services, whether cremation or burial; a formal traditional service or an informal gathering; either in our facility, at your church or other location of your choosing. Since there are so many ways to honor someone's life, we encourage you to contact us to see how we can assist you.
Please Join Us
11:30AM, Monday May 28th
Yellowstone Valley Memorial Park
3605 Grand Avenue
Michelotti-Sawyers Mortuary and Crematory is a locally and independently owned and operated full service funeral home and crematory. The business was started in 1956 by the late Robert G. Michelotti and John F. Sawyers. Their foresight led to the development of a funeral home dedicated to providing the best quality service possible to families at their greatest time of need.
That same dedication is evident today as John Michelotti, Barry Brekhus, and the entire staff of Michelotti-Sawyers strive to be of real assistance to those who have lost loved ones. As an invited member of Selected Independent Funeral Homes, Michelotti-Sawyers is recognized for it’s continued commitment to maintaining high standards in their character, performance, services, and facilities. With this membership, Michelotti-Sawyers is obligated to offer families a wide range of prices, as well as complete freedom to select a funeral service within their means.
In addition, Michelotti-Sawyers provides complete prearranged funeral planning and prepayment options. With the development of Yellowstone Valley Memorial Park in 1998, Michelotti-Sawyers is able to provide families with complete funeral and cemetery arrangements and services. This beautiful cemetery located at 3605 Grand Avenue in Billings provides a park setting with a lake and views of the Beartooth Mountains and the Rimrocks.
Michelotti-Sawyers has developed a genuine sense of care for the community. In order to show their concern outside of their professional environment, the staff of Michelotti-Sawyers have continued the tradition of community involvement that Bob Michelotti and John Sawyers started fifty years prior.
Michelotti-Sawyers understands that the loss of loved ones is a very difficult time for family and friends of the deceased. They have committed themselves to providing the best services and resources that families need in an environment that is comforting and welcoming. Over time, Michelotti-Sawyers Mortuary and Crematory has become a highly reputable full service funeral home and crematory due to their unconditional assistance and compassion.
Robert G. Michelotti
John F. Sawyers
John J. Michelotti
Barry Brekhus
Selected Independent Funeral Homes
As an invited member of Selected Independent Funeral Homes, Michelotti-Sawyers is recognized for it’s continued commitment to maintaining high standards in their character, performance, services, and facilities. With this membership, Michelotti-Sawyers is obligated to offer families a wide range of prices, as well as complete freedom to select a funeral service within their means.
Our Code of Good Practice
As funeral directors, our calling imposes upon us special responsibilities to those we serve and to the public at large. An important obligation is to provide information so that everyone can make knowledgeable decisions about funeral and cremation services.
In accepting our responsibilities, and as a condition of our affiliation with Selected Independent Funeral Homes, we affirm the following standards of good practice and hereby pledge:
To provide the public with information about funeral and cremation services, including prices, functions and the responsibilities of funeral directors
To make services available in as wide a range of price categories as necessary to meet the needs of all segments of our community, and to affirmatively extend to everyone the right to inspect and freely consider them all
To quote conspicuously in writing the charge for every arrangement offered, and to clearly identify the services, facilities, equipment and merchandise included in such quotations
To adhere to the highest standard of conduct in all aspects of business
To afford an ongoing opportunity to all persons to discuss or arrange funerals in advance
To ensure that pre-need contracts fully disclose those items which are guaranteed and those which are nonguaranteed, in terms that are clear and easy to understand
To manage prepaid funds responsibly, ensuring that promises are honored and expectations are met, within the letter and spirit of the law
To make no representation, written or oral, which may be false or misleading and to apply a standard of honesty in all dealings
To furnish each family, at the time arrangements are made, with a written memorandum of charges and to make no additional charge without their approval
To respect all faiths, creeds and customs, and to give full effect to the role of the clergy/celebrant
To maintain qualified and competent staff, appropriate facilities and suitable equipment required for comprehensive funeral and cremation services
To assure those we serve the right of personal choice in making service arrangements
We pledge to conduct ourselves at all times in a manner deserving of the public trust, and to provide a copy of this Code of Good Practice to the families we serve.
John Michelotti
John's association with the Mortuary began in elementary school when he ushered funerals for his dad.
He became a licensed mortician in 1977 and purchased the mortuary in 1986.
John attended the University of San Diego and graduated from the California College of Mortuary Science
John is a member of Billings Rotary Club and a past board member of Boys and Girls Club of Yellowstone County. He served on the State Board of Funeral Service from 1990 - 2006 and is past president of Selected Independent Funeral Homes and the National Conference of Examining Boards.
John and Alison married in 1990 and have two children, Severiano and Ali. John's daughters, Cecile and Alida, live in Texas.
Barry Brekhus
Barry has been involved with Michelotti-Sawyers Mortuary since July, 1980. He attended the University of North Dakota prior to graduating from the Mortuary Science Program at Mount Hood Community College, Gresham, Oregon. He and his wife Bobbie were married in 1995. Bobbie works for HRDC. They have a daughter Grace and grandson Kai.
Shawnee French
Shawnee joined our staff in January, 2003. She grew up in north eastern Montana and graduated from the Funeral Service Program at Mount Hood in 2002. Shawnee serves as secretary treasuerer for the Montana Funeral Directors Association and is also involved in Selected Independent Funeral Homes. In her free time, she enjoys gardening, gourmet cooking, golfing, and playing with her dogs, Emma and Penny. She is a member of American Lutheran Church and Billings Rotary.
Pat Carroll
Pat has been Superintendent of Yellowstone Valley Memorial Park since we broke ground in 1998.
A Billings native, Pat is a Vietnam Veteran. He is a member of Faith Chapel, served on the Billings Depot Board of Directors and coaches youth soccer.
Pat has two children, Andrew and Emily. He and his wife Diana were married in 2011.
Christen LeBlanc
Christen was born and raised in Eastern Montana. She joined our staff in July, 2011. A graduate of the Mount Hood Funeral Service Program, Christen was employed with Rose City Cemetery and Funeral Home while living in Portland. Prior to her career in funeral service she had worked in finance. In her free time she enjoys cooking, singing reading and walking her dog Mia
Steve Wilcox
Steve joined our staff in 2008 and assists with funeral services. He is a member of St. Nicholas Orthodox Church.In his free time Steve is building a new home for he and his son Brian.
Ron Velin
After many years in the Insurance and Financial Services sector, Ron has joined Michelotti-Sawyers Mortuary as a Family Services Counselor. Dealing primarily with prearrangement needs, Ron helps families understand the advantages, both emotional and financial, of taking care of final arrangements in advance of when they might be needed. Ron and his wife Sandy are born and raised Montanans' and have a grown son, Darin. Sandy is a Social Worker Instructor with the University of Montana. Ron's joy is singing, and he is usually involved with two or three groups simultaneously, singing in churches, nursing homes, corporate events and shows in the Billings area.
We offer this pledge to the community of Billings and the surrounding area:
- Maintenance will be second to none, just as we have maintained our mortuary facilities for over 50 years.
- Yellowstone Valley Memorial Park personnel will be thoughtful, considerate advisors-not pushy, aggressive sales people making unsolicited calls to your home.
- You can reach us at any time, any day of the week. Feel free to call us at Yellowstone Valley, Michelotti-Sawyers Mortuary, or even our homes.
- Yellowstone Valley Memorial Park is locally owned. We live here, too. Our responsibility is to you. Not the shareholders of a cemetery company.
- Our perpetual care fund deposit will be 15% of the purchase price of all graves ensuring the lasting beauty of your property.
- Yellowstone Valley Memorial Park will always be fully available to everyone in the Billings area, working with all area funeral homes.
