Obituaries

YAKIMA, Wash. Aloysius “Al” Swan, 83, of Toppenish died at Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital on Monday, June 19, 2006. Washat services will be at 6p. m. today at Colonial Funeral Home. Recitation of the rosary will be at 7 p.m. today at Colonial Funeral Home. Mass of Christian burial will be held Thursday at 10a. m. at St. Mary's Catholic Church in White Swan. Interment will follow at St. Mary's Cemetery in White Swan. He was born on July 4, 1922, in Fort Belknap to John and Mary (Gardipee) Swan. He served his country dur... Full story

ROCKY BOY Althea “Thea” Fern Bear, 44, was found Saturday June 17, 2006, at her home in Arlee. Her cause of death has not yet been determined and is under investigation by the coroner's office. Her wake service will begin Thursday afternoon with a rosary service beginning at 7p. m. at the Rocky Boy Catholic Church. Her funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday at the Rocky Boy Catholic Church with Father Pete Guthneck officiating. Burial will follow at the Rocky Boy Cemetery. Thea was born Jan. 19, 1962, in Great Fal...

BIG SANDY Donald LeRoy Reichelt, 88, a World War II veteran and retired farmer, died after a brief illness Monday, June 19, 2006, at the Big Sandy Medical Center. A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday at the Community Church of God in Big Sandy. Donald was born Aug. 25, 1917, in Big Sandy. He attended school in Big Sandy. As many young men did at the time, Donald went to the Civilian Conservation Corp. in the spring of 1936. In 1941, he drafted into the Army and was assigned to the Air Corps where he was part of... Full story

KALISPELL Aleen B. Chestnut, a resident of the Flathead Valley died Tuesday, June 13, 2006, in Whitefish. A memorial gathering at the home of her son on Spoon Lake will be held Saturday at 3 p.m. The address is 870 Lake Drive in Columbia Falls. For directions, call Tom Chestnut at (406) 387- 4286 or e-mail tomchestnut@yahoo.comtomchestnut@yahoo.com . She was born Aleen Byington in Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, June 6, 1916, to Henry and Viola Byington. She graduated from high school in Lava Hot Springs in 1934. She attended the... Full story

SPOKANE, Wash. Former Havre resident Thomas H. Brown, 87, died Monday, June 19, 2006, in Spokane of natural causes. A funeral service and burial will be held Friday in Davenport, Wash., at Strate Funeral Home. Tom was born July 18, 1918, in Zurich to Esther and Howard T. Brown. The family moved to Havre in 1927, where his father was manager of Clacks Hardware for 30 years before starting his own hardware business, Brown's Hardware. Tom was educated in Havre schools and joined the Navy in 1938. He served eight years and was... Full story

GENEVA, Ill. Doris R. Wagner, 78, of Geneva, Ill., died Saturday, June 17, 2006, at her home in Geneva. Visitation will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Norris Funeral Home, 100 S. Third St., St. Charles, Ill. Her funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Baker Memorial United Methodist Church in St. Charles. Doris was born in Havre on March 9, 1928, to LeRoy E. and Jeanne (Maris) Rhodes. She graduated from Havre High School in 1946 and earned her bachelor of science degree from Northwestern Univ...

LODGE POLE Jean M. (Brisbo) LaTray, 63, retired beautician, died Thursday, June 15, from injuries received in an automobile accident. A wake and rosary service will be 7 p.m. today at the Two Kill Center next to St. Thomas Catholic Church in Lodge Pole. Her funeral Mass will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday at St. Thomas Catholic Church in Lodge Pole. Cremation and burial of the cremated remains will be Tuesday following the services. Survivors include her daughters, Lori (George) Henderson and Dovey (Ronald) Smith of Billings;...

WINNEMUCCA, Nev. Donald W. Cross, 72, of Winnemucca, Nev., died Saturday, June 3, 2006, at his home with his family at his side. A memorial service celebrating Donald's life will be held in Havre at a later date. Donald was born in Havre to Walter and Velma Austin Cross. He served his country faithfully during the Korean War. He was a Lutheran and worked as a master electrician during his career. Donald was an allaround outdoorsman who loved hunting and fishing. He enjoyed his children and grandchildren tremendously. He...

NORTHBROOK, Ill. Former Havre resident Ilene Crilly, 98, of Northbrook, Ill., died at Manor Care Nursing Home in Northbrook on Sunday, June 4, 2006. A private memorial service will be held at the Village Presbyterian Church in Northbrook. Ilene was born Feb. 6, 1908, and lived in Kremlin until her marriage to Keith Wright. She was preceded in death by her husbands, Keith Wright and Howard Crilly; brothers; sisters; and parents. Survivors include her children, Myrna (Wright) Cruikshank of Northbrook, Ill., Dick Wright of...

ROCKY BOY Ronald James Pronteau, 43, died Sunday, June 11, 2006, in Las Vegas. His death is under investigation by the Clark County Coroners office. His wake service began Thursday night at the Rocky Boy Senior Citizens Center and was to continue today at the Our Saviour's Lutheran Church in Rocky Boy with his funeral service beginning at 11 a.m. today. Burial will follow at the Rocky Boy Cemetery. Ronald was born June 28, 1962, in Helena to Paul and Alma Marie (Morsette) Pronteau. He was raised and educated In Helena and... Full story

Dwight Harshman, 90, longtime Montana Methodist minister, died Monday, June 12, 2006, at Northern Montana Hospital due to natural causes. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Tuesday in Van Orsdel United Methodist Church. Dwight was born at Flora, Ind., April 3, 1916, to Albert and Anna (Brovont) Harshman. The Harshman family moved to Montana the fall of 1927, and lived in Chinook, except for two summers and one winter. Dwight finished grade school in Chinook, and graduated from high school in 1935. During his high... Full story

Ruth Matilda (Thompson) Brandon, 92, of Havre died of natural causes Wednesday, June 14, 2006, at Northern Montana Care Center in Havre. She was born on Aug. 6, 1914, in Basalt, Idaho. At the age of 9, she moved to Zurich with her family, where they raised sugar beets for the U&I Sugar Factory. She attended elementary school at the North Fork School, the East Chinook School, and high school in Harlem. In 1934, she married Ray Brandon, the love of her life. Together they raised four sons. They moved to Havre in 1957. He...

MISSOULA Elmer “Jake” Jacobson, 63, of Missoula died Thursday, June 8, 2006, while working in Idaho. At Jake's request, no service will be held and cremation will take place. A celebration of his life will be held later this summer. Jake was born July 2, 1942, in Chinook to Elmer Jacobson and Mae Haugen. He grew up in the Chinook area. As a young boy, he spent a number of years on his grandfather's ranch south of Chinook. He enjoyed spending time with grandfather, learning how to hunt, fish, ranch and be cowboy. He spent cou...

CASPER, Wyo. Cecil M. “Dusty” Rhodes, 86, of Casper, Wyo., died Tuesday, June 6, 2006, at his home. A service was held Monday at First United Methodist Church in Casper. Dusty was born in Havre on June 7, 1919, to Leroy E. and Jeanne Maris Rhodes. He graduated from Havre High School and Northern Montana College and earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from the University of Minnesota in 1941. He joined the U.S. Navy during World War II. He served on destroyers and submarines in the Pacific before joi... Full story

ANACONDA Dan McCarthy, 49, died surrounded by his family Thursday, June 8, 2006, in Fort Wayne, Ind., following a short illness. Cremation has taken place. Rosary will be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Longfellow Finnegan Funeral Home in Anaconda. A funeral service will be held at St. Peter's Catholic Church in Anaconda on Thursday at 10:30 a.m. Interment will follow at Mount Olivet Cemetery, followed by a luncheon at Holy Family Catholic Church. Dan was born on Sept. 18, 1956, to Robert P. and Marilyn McCarthy, the first of... Full story

HARLEM Neil E. Johnson, 82, of Harlem, former printer and publisher of the Chinook Opinion and Harlem News, died of congestive heart failure at his home Saturday, June 10, 2006, with his family present. At Neil's request, graveside services with military honors will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday at the Harlem Cemetery. Following the service, family and friends are invited to refreshments at the Harlem VFW Club. Neil was born in Cavalier, N.D., on June 13, 1923, to Theodore R. and Thelma (Abel) Johnson. The Johnson family moved t...

Elmer Barthol Gwynn, 90, of Havre died Sunday, June 11, 2006, at Northern Montana Care Center of natural causes. Viewing will be held at the Holland & Bonine Funeral Home from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday and Friday. Elmer's funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at Fifth Avenue Christian Church with Pastor Rowlie Hutton officiating. Burial will follow in Highland Cemetery with Masonic graveside services requested by the family. A fellowship luncheon will be held at the church after the graveside services. Elmer was...

Marjorie Helen Black-Fehlberg, a 1953 graduate of Havre High School and wife of late Borrego Springs Fire Chief Allen F. Fehlberg, died from cancer Friday, May 26, 2006, at her home in San Diego. At 16 years of age, she worked at the stockyards in Havre. She met Allen F. Fehlberg when she worked at Bob's Drive In, and they were married on Aug. 19, 1954. Black-Fehlberg's greatest joy, besides her family, was being one of the few women stock car racers in 1963 and 1964. After surviving two brain surjeries in 1980, she ran a...

Leonard Louis Thackeray, 86, of Havre died Friday, June 9, 2006, at Northern Montana Care Center after suffering a stroke. He had battled Parkinson's disease for several years. Viewing will be from 9 to 11 a.m. Tuesday with his funeral service beginning at 11 a.m. Tuesday at the Holland & Bonine Funeral Chapel with Pastor Adam Harris officiating. Burial with full military honors will follow at Highland Cemetery. A fellowship luncheon will be held at Calvary Baptist Church, 1204 Cleveland Ave. in Havre. Thackeray was born... Full story

June Ardell Erdahl, 84, died peacefully at her home in Havre on Wednesday, June 7, 2006. Cremation has taken place. A graveside service will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday at the North Froid Cemetery with Carol Karras officiating. June was born June 5, 1922, in Lengby, Minn., to Erick and Lora Erickson. She was raised and attended school in Lengby. On Dec. 23, 1945, she married Alvin Erdahl in Lengby. They returned to the family farm in Froid and lived there and in Froid until she moved to Havre in 2003. June enjoyed reading,...

Gene H. Coder, 77, of Havre died of congestive heart failure Monday, June 5, 2006, in the home of his son and daughter-inlaw Tim and Karla Coder of Helena surrounded by his loving family. Visitation and viewing will be Friday from 2 p.m. until 9 p.m. at Edwards Funeral Home Chapel in Chinook. There will be a celebration of his life at Fifth Avenue Christian Church in Havre on Saturday at 9 a.m. with the Rev. Rowlie Hutton officiating. Burial will follow in Highland Cemetery with military honors. Gene was born in Killarney,...

Gene H. Coder, 77, of Havre died of congestive heart failure Monday, June 5, 2006, in the home of his son and daughter-inlaw Tim and Karla Coder of Helena surrounded by his loving family. Visitation and viewing will be Friday from 2 p.m. until 9 p.m. at Edwards Funeral Home Chapel in Chinook. There will be a celebration of his life at Fifth Avenue Christian Church in Havre on Saturday at 9 a.m. with the Rev. Rowlie Hutton officiating. Burial will follow in Highland Cemetery with military honors. Gene was born in Killarney,... Full story

ROCKY BOY William Denny Jr., 66, a resident of Rocky Boy, died Sunday, June 4, 2006, at Northern Montana Hospital due to complications from a stroke. His wake service began Monday night at the family's residence and was to transfer to the Rocky Boy Lutheran Church this afternoon. His funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Our Saviour's Lutheran Church at Rocky Boy. Interment will follow at the Jr. Denny Cemetery in Rocky Boy. William was born May 17, 1940, on the north slope of Haystack Butte in Rocky Boy to... Full story

CHESTER Lillian M. (Rockman) Wright, 89, of Chester died peacefully at the Chester rest home early Wednesday morning, May 31, 2006. A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Chester United Methodist Church. Pastor Peter Erickson will officiate. Following burial at the Chester Cemetery, a luncheon will be held at the church. Lillian was born May 15, 1917, at Lothair to Christ “C.I.” and Helga (Johnson) Rockman. Lillian's father came to Montana in 1908 and purchased the Grand Hotel in Chester. In 1912, the Roc...

KREMLIN Donna L. Haugen, 77, a Kremlin area farm wife, died after a short acute illness Saturday, June 3, 2006, at Benefis Health Care in Great Falls. Cremation has taken place and her memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday at Van Orsdel United Methodist Church in Havre with Pastor Marvin Eldridge and Pastor VaunDalee DeLong officiating. A fellowship luncheon will be held at the church immediately after the service. A private family interment will be held at a later time. Donna was born May 15, 1929, in Havre to...