LILLIAN WESTIN obituary

CHINOOK - Lillian Westin, 97, a longtime Chinook homemaker, died of natural causes Friday, Sept. 17, 2004, at a Chinook nursing home.

At her request, no services are planned. Cremation has taken place with burial of ashes in Kuper Memorial Cemetery.

Lillian was born in Chinook on Aug. 15, 1907, to Chris and Carolyn (Kuhr) Miller. She was raised on the Miller Brothers ranch near Cleveland. After graduating eighth grade at Cleveland School, she attended Chinook High School boarded in town for three years. She graduated from Ursuline Academy in 1925. She attended two years of college at Carleton in Northfield, Minn., and later was a student at the University of Washington in Seattle.

On July 9, 1930, she married Ted Westin at her family's ranch home, from which they drove to make their home in Seattle. Ted worked for Bell Telephone Co. at Seattle for a year and they returned to Montana, where Ted was business manager for Miller Brothers at the ranch. They later owned the Milk River Elevator in Chinook and had livestock operations, feeding swine and cattle. They moved from the ranch to Chinook in 1944.

Lillian was a member of the First Church of Christ Scientist in Havre and Boston, Mass., Mountain Community Club, the Ten Pins Bridge Club, Northcentral Montana Cattlewomen, Chinook Garden Club, National Council of State Garden Clubs for which she was a past Montana state president and Rocky Mountain regional director, and was a charter member of Ikebana Chapter No. 8 and Jumping Juniper Garden Club. She was active in Lions with Ted. They attended many local and district functions and four international conventions. They made a People-to-People trip to the U.S.S.R., but their favorite trip was to Africa.

Ted died in 1972.

Lillian married Robert J. Smith in Denver, Colo., in 1975. They lived in Chinook and Tulsa, Okla., until they divorced in 1982.

Lillian enjoyed cooking, traveling with members of her family, being in her yard and growing many flowers. She had a special bond with her granddaughters.

For the past several years, she had been a resident of Northern Montana Care Center in Havre.

Lillian was preceded in death by her husband, Ted Westin; twin sisters, Doris and Dorine; and nephew, Allan Erb.

Survivors include her daughter, Linda (Gordon) Haugen of Chinook; granddaughters, Debbie (Dan) Arriola of Midland, Mich., Andrea Luckett of Missoula, Jennifer (Bill) Clark of Renton, Wash., and Carolyn Luckett of Salt Lake City, Utah; four great-granddaughters; and two nephews and two nieces.

Edwards Funeral Home of Chinook was in charge of arrangements.