Marvin C. Kostelecky, 79, of White Sulphur Springs died Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. He was born on April 18, 1944, to Mildred and Charles Kostelecky in Dickinson, N.D. He went to many schools during his lifetime including White Sulphur Springs. He was drafted into the Army in 1967. During his tour of duty, he was wounded and received two Purple Hearts and the Bronze Star. After returning home, he met Fran Van Dyke. She brought into the family a son, Deon. Together, they had together two children, Kandi Mil and Karson Ray. They lived in the farming area of Ryegate and Rapelje. They divorced in 1976. In 1976, he met and married Phyllis Ball, she came into the family with two children, Spencer and Lonnele. He was able to work for many different ranchers across Montana from Colstrip to Malta, Plentywood to Dagmar. He and Phyllis had a son, Kevin Charles. During their marriage, he found another daughter, Stacy. In 1992, they divorced. He then met Yvonne through his brother, Randy, and Randy’s wife, Connie, who is Yvonne’s sister. They married on July 16, 1993. She brought into the family two daughters, Sheila and Roberta. They worked on many different ranches together across Montana including Bainville and Shonkin. He also worked at the Wagonhound Land and Livestock Ranch in Douglas, Wyo., where he was able to drive teams of horses to feed with and to pull different kinds of buggies. They moved to WSS in 2010 and retired. Once again, Marvin was able to farm and ranch part time for Castle Mountain Ranch and for Jock & Jamie Doggett until his health became poor. He loved to watch his children and grandchildren play sports. He also loved watching the WSS Hornets and the Montana Griz. During his life, he was able to rodeo and even won a saddle at the NILE. He loved being a cowboy and driving a tractor. He is survived by his wife of 30 years, Yvonne; children, Deon, Stacy, Spencer, Sheila, Kandi, Lonnele, Roberta, Karson and Kevin; 14 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild; four brothers, Dennus of Wilsall, Randy of Columbus, Doug of Billings and Francis of Billings; and one sister, Coleen of Aurora, Colo. He was preceded in death by two brothers, Kenneth and Duane Kostelecky; one sister, Audrey Edwards; and one great-granddaughter, McKinley. Funeral services were held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 29, at the Yoked Parish of First Presbyterian and American Lutheran Church in White Sulphur Springs. Burial followed the service at Mayn Cemetery.

Melba Anderson, 86, of Culbertson died Nov. 24, 2023, in Wolf Point. Cremation has taken place and memorial services will be planned at a later date. Clayton Stevenson Memorial Chapel assisted with the arrangements.

Sarah Rabbe, 80, of Bainville died at the Roosevelt Medical Center in Culbertson on Saturday afternoon, Nov. 18, 2023. In keeping with her wishes, cremation has taken place. Father Paul Eberle will celebrate her Mass of Christian Burial at 11 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 1, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Williston, N.D. Interment in Riverview Cemetery will follow the funeral mass. Friends may

Herman L. Jensen, formerly of Culbertson, Mont., passed over to the Lord on the morning of Nov. 3, 2023. Herman was born on the Dane Valley farm on Feb. 5, 1927, the son of Oscar and Christine (Nielsen) Jensen. He grew up on the farm and attended school in McCabe and Culbertson. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II and afterward worked at Moen’s Hardware and Grocery Store for six years. Then, he attended Barber College and barbered for 10 years. He then served as an agent for Pioneer Mutual Life Insurance, serving his clients until his death. He was a member of the American Legion Post 81 for 75 continuous years and he had held offices at local, district and state levels. He was State Commander in 1983 and 1984. He served on the town council in Culbertson, was Lions Club president and participated in many town activities. He enjoyed hunting with his boys and, during the winter, fishing for lingcod on the Missouri. After retiring, Herman and Elaine wintered in Mesa, Ariz., and spent their summers in Culbertson. In 2013, he and Elaine moved to Billings to reside at Morning Star Senior Living, where Elaine passed away in 2018. They made many fond memories while at Morningstar, as it became home. While in Billings, Herman picked up woodcarving, but his big passion was playing league pool on Thursday afternoons at the 1145 Club. The last game he played, he won. He was also the oldest participant in the 2017 Big Sky State Games. Herman attended a Cursillo weekend and, later, he and Elaine went on a pilgrimage, visiting Rome and Medjugorje. He looked forward to praying Morning Prayer from the Psalms of the Psalter and he was currently a member of St. Bernard Catholic Parish in Billings. He is survived by his three sons and their families: Neil, Brian (Joanna) and Blake (Denise); his six grandchildren, Emily (Josh), Nathan (Katie), Calvin (Jamie), Amy (Eric), Adam (Celine) and Erik; and his four great-grandchildren, Bailey, Caleb, Sam and Josie. Herman was preceded in death by his wife, Elaine, of 67 years; and his six siblings, Howard (Phoebe), Alvin (Alice), Laura (Howard), Isabelle (Bill), Ira (Christine) and Grace. Memorials may be made to the American Legion Park Account held in Culbertson. Please mail to Opportunity Bank of Montana, PO Box 579, Culbertson, MT 59218. The Vigil will be at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 16, at St. Bernard Catholic Church in Billings. A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 17, with a luncheon to follow. The burial will be at the Yellowstone National Cemetery in Laurel, Mont., following the luncheon. (Paid Obituary)

James Patrick Byrne died peacefully at his home in Northfield, Ill., on Nov. 2, 2023, after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. Mr. Byrne was born Feb. 7, 1929, in Culbertson, Mont. James was raised on an eastern Montana sheep ranch and wheat farm, Hilltop Farms. The farm was homesteaded in 1916 by his Irish father after he immigrated from County Louth, Ireland. His father was soon joined by his equally Irish mother Sarah, a teacher. James attended grade school in a one-room country schoolhouse one mile south of the family farm. His typical mode of transportation to school was walking or riding a horse, often times pulling his younger sisters on sleigh in the winter. He graduated high school from St. Thomas Military Academy, going on to attend and graduating from St. Thomas University in St. Paul, Minn., with a business degree in 1951. He served in the United States Air Force as a second Lieutenant in the Central Air Procurement Division from 1951 to 1953. He married Mary Margaret “Peggy” Roney from Grosse Point, Mich., in 1958. They lived in Baltimore, Md., and Wilmette, Ill., before settling in Winnetka, Ill., in 1965 where he and Peggy raised six children. Mr. Byrne was an independent businessman, entrepreneur and financier for more than 50 years, owning and running a wide-range of traditional and high technology businesses. Early on, he owned several businesses in the auto industry that received, modified and transported new cars by rail and truck transport from the shipyards on both American coasts. He then started a Chicago company that transported cars from the Ford Motor plant, on the south side of Chicago, to Midwest dealerships. In later years, his business interests moved to the software and financial services industries. He established Momentum Systems based in Mukilteo, Wash., providing maintenance and support services as well as hardware for high volume data communication software used by major banks and other financial institutions. He is survived by his wife, Mary Margaret “Peggy” Byrne nee Roney; his children, Mary Margaret Gronskis, Rosemary Roney (Carey) Dowdle, James P. Byrne Jr., Kathleen Marie (David) Kennedy and David Michael (Lori) Byrne; 10 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Also surviving are his sisters, Mary Lou Byrne of Denver, Colo., and Theresa Byrne (Phillip) Westine of Pantego, Texas. He was preceded in death by his parents, James and Sarah Byrne; his sisters Margaret Rose Byrne and Sarah Ann (Dr. Robert) Craven; his beloved son, Peter; and his sonin-law, George Gronskis. A Mass of Christian Burial was held Monday, Nov. 6, 2023, at Saints Faith, Hope & Charity Church, Winnetka IL 60093, followed by Interment at Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery, Northbrook. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. Info: donnellanfuneral. com. (Paid Obituary)

Richard Wayne Martell, 68, of Blair died Nov. 1, 2023. He was born in Wauwatosa, Wis., on July 17, 1955, the sixth child of Violet and Max Martell. He resided in Blair where he raised and took care of all his animals. He was a Jack-of-all-trades and was a hardworking man. He loved to go hunting, play pool, listening to music (especially Elvis Presley) and going for rides in the country on his golf cart. He was adventurous and was always telling jokes. He was a big kid at heart and loved spending time with his nieces and nephews, especially the two who he helped raise, Cheyenne and Dakota Comes Last. He taught them how to fish, hunt, fence and so much more. He worked at Richland Yellowstone Manufacturing since 1989 until he retired in July 2023. He is survived by two brothers, Max Martell Jr,. and John Martell Sr.; and five sisters, Margorie Ivy, Kathy Martell-Roundface, Terri Lonebear, Vickie Martell and Valerie Martell. He was preceded in death by three sisters, Maxine Zimmerman, Marilyn and Mayda Martell; and one brother, James Martell. His funeral service was held Thursday, Nov. 9, at the Poplar Cultural Center. Interment was in the Martell Family Cemetery in Blair. Clayton Stevenson Memorial Chapel was in charge of the arrangements.