Obituaries

Jul 10, 2017

Brian Joseph Van Valkenburg, who spent the last 28 years fighting to overcome injuries sustained in a car accident, died July 6, 2017, in Billings. He was 60 years old.

Brian was born in Denver on Feb. 16, 1957, to Fred and Aileen Van Valkenburg. He and his family moved to Billings a few months later. Brian...

Jul 10, 2017

Colonel Robert C. ‘Bob' Laliberte, United States Air Force (Retired), made his last flight on July 6, 2017. He was born Aug. 11, 1921, in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the oldest of four children, to Cyril Victor and Kathryn Rita Healy Laliberte. When he was 12 years old, his mother passed away and his father relocated the family to...

Jul 9, 2017

Billie Becotte, 90, of Billings died Saturday, June 24, 2017, and has gone to be with her Lord and Savior after a long, rich and healthy life. Having been one of the healthiest individuals in her age group, she never was one with chronic disease. She, in consultation with God, determined her time had successfully concluded here on earth....

Jul 7, 2017

Our mother, Jeanne McGraw, spent her final days surrounded by family in Billings Clinic. My brothers, Dan and Paul Schulze, and I, Lana Sangmeister, along with our respective spouses, Becky and Teri Schulze and Charles Sangmeister, and extended family, said our final goodbyes to Mom on July 4, 2017. She was just shy of her 90th birthday, which was...

Jul 4, 2017

Marjorie Waller passed away peacefully on June 30, 2017, with her family and kitty, Muffy, by her side.

Marjorie was born April 14, 1931, in Great Falls. She was the only child of George C. Moline and Doris Bjornstad Moline. She was raised in Great Falls and attended McKinley School, Paris Gibson Junior High, and graduated as...

Jul 2, 2017

Jack E. Young passed away on June 26, 2017, after an extended fight to heal complications from heart disease and lung issues. He was 76.

Jack was born on March 6, 1941, in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. He enlisted in the Air Force after high school, and, during his service, he met Mary Barrett of Springfield, Massachusetts. They married...

Jul 1, 2017

Rochelle Libby Feld "Rocky" passed on June 28, 2017, in Houston, Texas. She was born in Minneapolis on Feb. 2, 1952, to Joseph and Ilse Rozman, both Holocaust survivors. It has been said that from day one she was a handful for her parents and big sister Bonnie. She was a wonderful and loving daughter who loved helping her...

Jun 28, 2017

Helen was born July 16, 1922 , the second daughter of Roy and May (Skundberg) Keddy. She arrived in the music room of the Skundberg farmhouse south of Beardsley, Minnesota. She was greeted by older sister Louise and, within a decade, two additional siblings, Bernice and brother John, rounded out the family.

The Keddys moved to Minneapolis...

Jun 28, 2017

Patricia Joan (McBride) Reichenberg, 84, passed away Friday, June 9, 2017, peacefully, at home, with her husband and loving family by her side.

Pat was born in Billings, MT, on May 17, 1933, to Curtis McBride and Frances Regnier McBride. They divorced and Frances married Paul Vincelette in 1941 in Bremerton, WA. Pat lived in Bremerton, WA,...

Jun 27, 2017

Born on Feb. 9, 1933, on the original family farm near Hampden, ND, during a North Dakota prairie snowstorm, Harold Dave "Swede" Swenson was the youngest of three children born to Robert and Freda Swenson. He passed away on June 24, 2017, with his loving wife Sonja at his side.

Swede is survived by his wife of...

Jun 26, 2017

Franklin Lee Arbuckle, known as Lee, was born April 30, 1943, in Belle Fourche, South Dakota, to Frank and Mary Lee (Richardson) Arbuckle. Mary Lee was widowed with four small children when she married Frank, and Lee was their only child, but Frank treated Mary Lee's other four children as his own. Frank's family owned the Arbuckle Ranch in...

Jun 23, 2017

Rosetta (Dit) Strecker passed away Wednesday morning, June 21, 2017.

Rosetta was born on Nov. 18, 1924, to Hazel and William Willmore in Billings. Rosetta was one of five girls and her older sister could not say "sister babe" and instead called her "ditter babe," and thus she was stuck with the loving nickname of Dit her...

Jun 23, 2017

Janice Louise Witt was called home on June 23, 2017. She was born to Robert and Lucille Gordon on June 21, 1927, in Idaho Falls, Idaho. She died peacefully at Aspen Meadows, after a short bout with pneumonia and congestive heart failure. She was 91.

She lived in Dillon before moving to Great Falls, where she attended...

Jun 20, 2017

On June 20, 2017, Eida V. (Stockman) Hooley passed away at St. John's Lutheran Home.

Eida was born to Swedish parents in Finland, and emigrated to the U.S. with her sister Margot post-WWII. There, she learned English, became a U.S. citizen, married and raised a family, and started a small business.

She was fiercely proud...

Jun 18, 2017

Jan (Jeanette) Schroeder was born July 18, 1943, in Los Angeles. She passed away of natural causes on May 21, 2017, at her home in Billings.

Jan grew up in South Dakota and also lived in Minnesota, Colorado and Montana. She worked for most of her adult life for NAPA Auto Parts in various positions, retiring as...

Jun 16, 2017

Following a three-year battle with cancer, Dolores Ruth Mundale was released by the bounds of this earth and died peacefully on Monday, June 12, 2017, with her family at her side. She was 90 years young.

In Heaven, she is freed of discomfort, finally at peace, sharing her brand of love that is boundless. Sharing a compassion...

Jun 16, 2017

Wayne was born in Sidney on Aug. 8, 1968. He attended schools in Glendive until 1984, when the family moved to Billings. His fondest memories as a young boy were spending weekends and summers on the family farms in Fairview. Wayne graduated from Billings West in 1986, being honored by the Who's Who among high school students. Wayne received...

Jun 13, 2017

Christina Alexandra Demis, 35, passed away in June of 2017.

She was born on Jan. 8, 1982. Christina was an exceptional woman with attributes only surpassed by the one who created her. Without a doubt, she will be remembered for her kind heart, strong will and persistence to spread love.

Funeral services will be at...

Jun 7, 2017

Eric Elon Thompson, Jr. was born to Blenda and Eric Thompson on May 6, 1924, in Worcester, MA. Eric's formative years were spent with the Greendale Avenue kids during the Depression. He was active in baseball, basketball, Boys Scouts, and he was a big fan of the library. Spending summer days at the summer home at Stiles Reservoir was...

Jun 6, 2017

Howard Clinton Love, 94, of Billings, left this world to begin his eternal camping trip. Howard was born in Columbus on Dec. 21, 1922, to Ethel (Granny) and Richard Love.

Howard honorably served his country in the U.S. Army from 1943 to 1945. He then met the love of his life, Lucile, and they were married Sept....