In Memory: January, February and March 2023

As is our tradition at the Anaconda Leader, we are taking a look back at the lives of the people we have lost in the past year, starting with obituaries that appeared in the Leader between January and March of 2023. 

January

Thomas Addis McGuire

Tom was a truck driver, logger, and a hard rock miner.  He was completely in his element when he was stopeing out, sinking shaft, driving raises, or driving drift. Tom was a past member of the Montana Logging Association and Communities for a Great Northwest.  More importantly, Tom was a founder and member of the “Frog Pond Basin Boys.” After retiring, he turned the air back on and started cutting firewood.

David G. (Boogie) Reiss

Dave enjoyed hunting, fishing and camping. He lived for hunting and he looked forward to setting up the hunting camp every year with his hunting buddies: Jerry Clark, Billy Clark, Bobby Monahan, Mike Finnegan and Terry Miller. He enjoyed his “Harley Davidson” and had high hopes of traveling many highways. Boogie was an outdoor kind of guy, he loved the wide-open spaces.

Tom Sanders

One afternoon while at the U of M, he opened the door to a beautiful, spunky young woman in her floppy straw hat (lovingly named “Winifred”) and a cute empire waist pink dress. Not only was Tom’s breath caught in that moment, but his heart was soon to follow. He dated her throughout the rest of college and married the love of his life, Barbara Ann (Wirkman) Sanders on September 8, 1971. Their wedding was truly unique for the old Justice of the Peace. They “pre-functioned” a bit too long at good old Eddie’s Club in Missoula and were about 10 minutes late for their own wedding. He married them and they threw their “just for the occasion” cheap copper rings off the bridge into Rattlesnake Creek as a symbol of their love without the need for material things. As they were doing this, the old JP told Barb’s sister Elaine and Tom’s best friend Alan, “I give those two 6 months.” Tom was by Barb’s side the day she passed from this life 48 years later.

Ellen Anne Strommen

Michigan State University became Ellen’s career home, where she was a psychology professor until retiring in June of 1997.  During this time she traveled to Russia, wrote and published texts on developmental psychology, and mentored and reviewed dissertations for a multitude of students.  She attended retreats and campouts, made long road trips, and entertained deep thoughts about life in general. She moved to Missoula in 2001 and immediately joined four reading groups.  She faithfully attended Lady Griz games and concerts by Missoula Symphony and String Orchestra of the Rockies, and especially enjoyed performances by drum groups.  She held fascinating conversations with people of all ages and was interested in every person’s story.  

Bonnie Joyce (Wire) Fraser

After graduating from Methodist State Hospital School of Nursing, she married Daniel I. Fraser on July 6, 1951 in Laverne, MN. She worked as a nurse until 1958 when she devoted herself full-time to being a housewife. Bonnie gave her life to Christ in baptism at the Cleveland Ave. Church of Christ in Sioux Falls, SD, and was faithful to the Lord until her death. Bonnie enjoyed fishing, teaching Sunday school, and making cards for loved ones.

Thomas Edward Crnich

Tom began his teaching career at Anaconda Central Catholic High School in 1961, where he taught English until the school closed in 1973. He then moved to Anaconda High School, where he continued teaching English until his retirement in 1994. He instructed all grade levels, teaching classes ranging from Honors’ English to Survival Literature to Shakespeare. He was also very involved in many school-related activities; one of his favorite was coaching girls’ track. He also thoroughly enjoyed coaching his son Kurt’s flag football and middle school football teams. Teaching was a calling for Tom. He had a rare gift for making his classes fun and engaging for his students. He spent countless hours reading and correcting papers, making comments and suggestions tailored for each student. He wore out hundreds of red pens over the course of his teaching career. He truly enjoyed every moment of teaching and the many students who passed through his classes. He always said his students taught him as much as he taught them. He was a great teacher, a mentor and a leader, who positively impacted the lives of so many students.

Shelly Ann Ladd

She attended Idaho State University and then graduated from Quachita Baptist University with a degree in Theology. Shelly went on to receive her masters in religion and social work from Golden Gate Seminary in Mill Valley, California. She then began her long career in Counseling; first in San Francisco then eventually in the Sacramento area where she practiced until her death. She specialized in helping children and women who were victims of domestic violence.

Georgia Camille Ladd

Mom was also a quilter and seamstress, sewing everything from doll clothes to three piece suits. In her later years she turned to quilting and made countless quilts for family members, new babies, and newlyweds. Every family member also had a quilted Christmas stocking that was filled with new knitted cotton dishrags each year. Mom was also a very accomplished pianist and organist. She played both for all of the churches that she attended over the years and was also involved in the State and local Southern Baptist Convention music programs. She had both a piano and organ in her living room and played them often. She had a beautiful singing voice and was involved in choirs and music ministry in Iowa, Idaho, Utah and Montana. She was a long-time member of South Hills Baptist Fellowship, where she was the pianist until just recently. She was a strong and loving Christian woman who was an inspiration to many, faithfully serving God and her church family. Mom always claimed that God and Dr. Weiner saved her life twice in her battles with cancer. She always made sure everyone was comfortable, well fed and had clean sheets and fresh towels, she was the best hostess, even until the very end.

Cynthia Marie Ricci Fortner

Cindy’s focus in her life was her family and raising her children while Larry worked. This was a struggle at times, but she always piled the kids and Grandma Ag in the car and took a ride somewhere. Cindy also enjoyed being part of bowling, softball leagues and being a Girl Scout Leader. She also liked to decorate wedding cakes with her mom. Cindy enjoyed being with her friends and had a best friend or “sister,” Gayle Venturelli who was always there for her up until the very end.  Cindy worked various jobs at times during her life.  Cindy and Larry were married until his death in 2012. Even then, she still felt his presence with her every day.

Mary Lou (Fink) Malee

Mary Lou managed to never miss any of her children’s or grandchildrens’ sporting events, recitals, or holiday plays. She was a proud parent who sat in the back row and bragged about her children and grandchildren any and every chance she got. She lived to bring joy to those around her.  She prioritized her family above all else with her support, knitting and crocheting blankets and stocking for all of her children and grandchildren, baking prisnac and sweets to share, sending cards of love and apprieciation at every turn and just making sure everyone knew they were loved by her.

Patricia Ann Lee

Patsy was always involved in the community.  She was an officer in the Croatian Fraternal Union of Anaconda, and lifelong member of the Catholic Church of Anaconda.  Her faith was very important to her and she enjoyed Saturday evening mass with friends at Holy Family.  She loved cruising the drag and keeping tabs on the community with her police scanner.  Her favorite place was a kitchen table surrounded by family and friends. She loved to talk, laugh, do puzzles, play cards, drink coffee, and “give a hard time” to everyone around her.

Helen Dianne “Helie” Varelia

Helen loved the color pink, butterflies, and the ocean. Her home speaks of the joy she found in these symbols. She relished working in the yard and puttering around on various projects. For many years her beloved pup, Nikki, was a constant presence at her side. She also delighted in travel and spending time with friends. In retirement, she went on many adventures with her dear cousin Joan (Duffy) Poston. They enjoyed road trips out of state, trips to Hawaii and other places, and quick local getaways. They had been very close growing up in the same town and found great delight in spending their later years in adventures together once again.

Margaret Ann “Peggy” Durand

A graduate of Granite High School in Philipsburg, MT, Peggy grew up in the “Flint Creek Valley” with her parents (Forrest “Buster” and Clara Ann Merrifield (Metcalf)) and sister Jamie on ‘the ranch’ near Porter’s Corner. Peggy married her late husband, LeRoy (d. April 19, 2021), on June 2nd, 1965, and raised their three sons in Philipsburg. Peggy worked in the Title Insurance industry throughout her career in Montana, Washington, and Nevada, before retiring and returning with LeRoy to Montana (Anaconda) in 2005.

Lois Frankie Braham

Lois’ lifetime passion was to travel, and she traveled extensively in the years after her husband’s death. Some of her travels included Europe, India, Egypt, Israel, and South America. She also loved to shop for outfits and shoes, as well as dining out. Lois was a very social person and loved to make new friends. She loved socializing and spending time with friends. Christmas and birthday cards were always important to her. She moved back to her beloved Montana permanently in 2004, residing in the Four Corners/Bozeman area.

February

Pat Johnson

She liked to go back to the house where she grew up in Anaconda.  She enjoyed spending time with family and friends, doing her family genealogy, tending to her dinner-plate Hibiscus plants, and reading books.  Pat liked the 1950’s Rock and Roll Music, and Country Music, especially Charley Pride.  Both my parents would meet him in Garrison, MT when they both were traveling home in the early hours.  I will never forget the story of when Charley came to play in Pasco, WA and Pat and George went to the concert, a lot of people were rushing onto the stage.  Charley looked up and saw them, asking my Dad what the heck they were doing here. My Dad replied, “This is where we live.” Of course every one turned to look at my parents.

Mary Alice “Map” Smith

Map was a stay-at-home mom until the mid-1970’s.  Map then decided to join the workforce and began working for the Anaconda Water Company.  Map loved her job. She especially loved visiting with everyone who came into the office.  Map was definitely a “people” person and loved getting to know everyone in town.  After Map retired from the Water Company, she enjoyed time spent with family & friends.  

Grace Irene (Richie) Ness

Mom worked side-by-side with dad on their farm in Rudyard, MT. They owned Ag Air, Inc. and grew and harvested wheat. She washed A LOT of airplane windows. She was a very hard worker and a huge asset in making Ag Air as successful as it was. Grace loved traveling to Hawaii with her husband and later her best friend Corrine. She also enjoyed traveling with her son, Dana Ness to the NAAA conventions in Savannah, GA. Her home was always a great place to stop and visit around a cup of coffee in the morning and her grandkids brought her a lot of joy. Family and close friendships were very important to her and she loved spending time visiting if they stopped to see her on the Hi-Line or traveling to see them. Her last few years were spent in Butte, Montana where she was closer to her 3 children and best friend.

Doris M. Blank

Doris worked as a waitress and had a band of her own and would play and sing on the radio. She met several famous musicians while singing on the radio.  Doris also worked in the clothing department at Walmart for several years and at the Anaconda Leader as a reporter and photographer. Doris loved painting, using watercolor, writing poetry, and knitting and crocheting.  Her great grandsons – Mavrik and Nathan – were the light of her life.

Colleen Olson

Colleen loved and adored all her family. She was happiest when her large family surrounded her at the cabin at Georgetown Lake. She was especially proud of her children’s and grandchildren’s accomplishments and boasted their achievements to anyone who would listen. She loved supporting them at their sporting events and dance performances. Colleen and Jimmy traveled most weekends to watch as many of the events as they could.

Barbara (Berdie) Jean Stranieri (LeBlanc)

Berdie’s favorite time of year was Christmas due to the spiritual message of the holiday and her love for decorating. She had an incredible artistic eye for decorating her house with the Christmas spirit. Her gifts were beautiful, and an enormous amount of time was put into making them look perfect and classy. Gina and Nick were not overly amused by the weeklong gift-wrapping marathon sessions. Nick still feels a hot glue gun was overkill, but Berdie insisted it was the only way to make a present look appropriate. Ever the perfectionist she also had themed trees each year and decorations to match. Once, the Anaconda Leader voted her home as one of the best decorated that Christmas.

Ruth (Hanson) Blom

Ruth and Adrian spent most of their evenings and weekends enjoying their time with their family and friends in the outdoors. They loved to snowmobile, camp, and fish as much as they possibly could. Ruth also enjoyed her nights out with her friends at the bowling alley. She cherished her time with Dorthy Smith, Joy Connors, and Terri Kovacich. She also enjoyed visiting with her close friend Agnes Funston. She loved mothering her brothers and sister/best friend Barb as much as they would allow her to.

March

Audrey Virginia Anderwald

Her family camped in Yellowstone Park, near the old feeding grounds for the bears.   It was an exciting time when a bear climbed into their car (after the honey). The family went on picnics, the Butte Columbia Gardens, and later the Flathead Lake cabin was the place to relax. Sometime after High School, in 1941, Audrey went to school in California to learn the skill to read the clouds and give weather reports to pilots. She stayed awhile in California to finish job training before coming back to Butte. A little gutsy, she drove to Dillon and Whitehall to give the weather report to pilots. Audrey enjoyed her job. She was a lifelong watcher and reader of clouds.   

Catherine B. “Cathy” Orrino

Cathy started working full time at Montana State Hospital after her college graduation in 1974. Cathy was still employed there 48 years later at the time of her passing. Cathy was the Forensic Mental Health Facility Admissions Manager at the Galen Campus. She was very dedicated to her work and treated all patients and fellow employees with respect and compassion. Cathy worked closely with all of the state and county agencies and formed lasting relationships with all of them. Cathy very much enjoyed her “work family” and made many lifelong friends along the way. Because of Cathy’s work ethic and dedication she was awarded the Governor’s Award for Excellence in Performance in 2013 from former Governor Bullock. Cathy was always very humble, but she was very pleased to be recognized for her work.

Deanna “Dee” Mae Cron

She was a devoted mom taking care of her family while always having another job. She worked many different jobs, waitressing at numerous restaurants, drove school bus for years, and, lastly, retired from bartending at the JFK where her personality shined. She was a “social butterfly” and a “people pleaser” with many “life-long friendships.”

William A. Swanson

Bill never forgot his roots. The five Swansons cherished annual pilgrimages to Montana for visiting family and fly fishing at Rock Creek, the Big Hole River, and Georgetown Lake, singing the state song as we drove across the state line.  Several times Monica’s parents came along, and the two sets of grandparents became fast friends. In his middle years, Bill returned to his childhood love of skiing and developed a new passion for family tree research.  A consummate family man, Bill’s vacation days always included his wife and kids, and oftentimes extended family, some of whom affectionally dubbed him “Ranger Bill”.  After retirement, he had time for many more fly fishing and skiing adventures in California and Montana, with his buddies.

Charles Arthur Dowd

Charles A. Dowd was born in Rochester, New York. His parents were David Albert Dowd, a World War I veteran and Postal Carrier, and Josepha Grace Hillen, a Nursing Supervisor. During March 1941 of his senior year in high school, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was trained as a radioman in Newport Rhode Island and San Diego California. He was assigned to duty in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. He was a combatant in the Attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, and has been one of the last living survivors of that historic event. He went on to serve on fighting vessels in the Pacific Theater in the Solomon Islands and New Guinea until the end of the war and was discharged in December 1945.

Patricia C. Vauthier

Patricia was born September 8, 1931 to Neal and Wilda Sturdevant in Gage, MT.  They lived in Roundup, Mt. for a while then moved to a small cabin in Warm Springs, MT.  The family worked in the Big Hole valley for some wealthy people every summer.  She had many good stories and memories of those days.  She went to first grade in the Warm Springs school.  They then moved to Opportunity, MT and ran a chicken farm that sold eggs to the local grocery stores. She attended Beaver Dam School until 6th grade then rode the bus to town and finished her education in Anaconda.  She worked in Warm Springs Hospital, then worked as a custodian for the Anaconda School system.  

David A. Collinsworth

David loved baseball and the great outdoors. He was a lifetime member of Walleye Unlimited and a founding member of the Anaconda Little League. He was extremely passionate about kids learning to hunt, fish, and play sports. David will be greatly missed by his fishing family, especially by his water fight and fishing partner, Kevin Corbitt. David loved his pranks and making sure everyone around him felt his immense joy and love. Anyone he talked to always left with a new fishing tip and/or a huge smile.

Joyce Gutcheck

On March 18th, 2023, Joyce Gutcheck passed away with family at her side in Anaconda, MT. Joyce was 91 years old. She was a wonderful mother, full of life and love for her family and friends.  Her smile, wit and joyful nature touched many people. Joyce is survived by her son Glen Gutcheck of Anaconda; daughters Marilyn Dick of Portland, OR, Christine/Steve Arveschoug of Billings, MT; daughter-in-law Paulette Eccleston of Dillon, MT; grandsons Nicholas Gutcheck (Johnathan)/Anna Jennifer of Dillon, MT, Dr. Anthony Arveschoug of Royal Oak, MI; granddaughters Julie/Ashish (Kiran&Rohin) Gupta, Sandy/Ben (Mila&Will) Ehlert of Portland, OR, Alexandra/Rostyn Hamilton of Hendersonville, NC; nephew, Robert A. Gutcheck and cousin, Melody Madden (Jack, Chloe,&Claire) of Tucson, AZ.

Doris Mae Lane

Doris was born to Geneveria (née Mooney) and Frank “Red” Ward on May 11, 1936, in Sheridan, Wyoming. Doris married Frank Lane in June of 1954. Doris and Frank have four daughters: Melody Lane-Philpot (Steve), Stella Miller (Carl), Rosemarie Marengo (Mike), and Denise Lane. Doris is preceded in death by her parents; her brothers Bill, Jimmy, Dick, and Bob Ward; and her beloved grandson Luke Lane-Lockard. She is survived by her husband Frank, her sister Sandra Domitrovich (Patrick), four daughters, seven grandchildren, and nine greatgrandchildren.