Ernest “Ernie” Lee Flynn, 73, died Oct. 30, 2022, at his home in Billings. He was born May 8, 1949, to Donna M. Reddoor and Lionel E. Flynn in Poplar. He was raised by his grandparents, Josephine and Edwin Reddoor, and attended grade and high school in Poplar. At 19 years old, he was inducted into the Army on Oct. 8, 1968, and traveled by train to Fort Lewis, Wash., to start basic training. After months of training, he got orders for Vietnam and served there from March 1969 to May 1970. This was a defining time that set off a lifetime of sacrifice that would include total blindness and partial deafness that struck a few years after he was discharged. After returning home from Vietnam, he had several different jobs. He was an avid hunter and loved fishing and the outdoors. He was also a skilled carpenter. He worked as a patrolman for the Poplar Police Department in 1971. He also worked at A& S Industries in Poplar as an inspector, spending days test-firing weapons. This is where he met his future wife while she was working as a secretary. He married Yvonne Rose Brown on Feb. 19, 1971. They had two children, Ernest Jr. and Stacee Ann. He started working for the Veterans Administration at Fort Harrison in Helena in 1978, helping fellow veterans as a veterans benefits counselor for 18 years until retiring in 1995. Retirement led to a move to Billings to be closer to his son and daughter-in-law. His dedication to fellow veterans led him to volunteer with the Disabled American Veterans transportation program. He helped take phone calls and arranged rides to medical appointments for veterans. He was recognized at the 2014 DAV national convention as DAV Volunteer of the Year. He logged over 25,000 hours volunteering until COVID shut down the office. He was full of wit and charm and made everyone he met feel important from the nurse doing a blood draw to lifelong friends. He was a voracious reader, enjoying stories of adventure and keeping up to date with all current events reading various newspapers. He was also a known Scrabble shark winning nearly every game he played. He was a member of Mensa, an organization open to people who score at the 98th percentile on IQ tests. He was preceded in death by three siblings. He is survived by his wife, Yvonne of Billings; son, Ernie Jr. of Missoula; daughter, Stacee of Billings; one grandchild; sister, Debbie Farris of Polson; brothers, Randy Farris of Indiana, Hank Flynn, Roger Flynn, Tom Flynn and Perry Flynn, all of Oswego. There will be a full military graveside burial, United States Army, at Yellowstone National Cemetery in Laurel in summer 2023.

Our awesome aunt, Elizabeth “Betty” Nefzger, went with the angels on Oct. 28, 2022, with her niece and great-niece at her side. At the young age of 101, she was able to leave this world while still living at the Vista Assisted Living on St. John’s United Campus. Betty was born on May 4, 1921, in Phoenix, Ariz., to Branchie and Lewis Clark, joining her two brothers, Chuck and Delbert. Two years later, her sister Lucille arrived. She was raised in L.A. County in California and graduated from Abraham Lincoln High School in 1939. After graduation, she worked at th L.A. General Hospital and enrolled in the L.A. City College nursing worked program. During World War II, the family moved to Escondido, Calif., and she went to work at Consolidated Aircraft in San Diego, Calif. She met a young man from Montana, Ray Nefzger, who was serving in the U.S. Navy. On March 20, 1943, they were married at Escondido, Calif. In 1945, Ray was discharged and they moved to Vida, Mont., to take over the family farm. Over the years, she worked the farm, was active in her church and enjoyed her time at Templed Hills Bible Camp where she served as camp counselor and got in some fishing! Betty is survived by her nieces and nephews, she called her own: Maggie Graef of Indianapolis, Ind., Agnes (Ken) Heser of Wolf Point, Mont., Ruth Laramee of Billings, Mont., Chuck (Sheri) Olsen of Spokane, Wash., and Les (Paulette) Olsen of Fort Peck, Mont. She is also survived by her niece and Goddaughter, Dea (Craig) Hostetler of Glendive, Mont., and numerous other nieces and nephews. Betty was preceded in death by her husband, Ray; her parents; brothers; sister; and niece, Laura Payne. The full obituary can be seen at the Cremation and Funeral Gallery website. (Paid Obituary)

On Oct. 23, 2022, Wayne Peterson, son of Eva Rae and Gordon Peterson of Culbertson, died at his home in Butte at age 87. An educator throughout his life, he earned his degrees at Minot State in North Dakota and the University of Montana. He began his career as a school teacher and basketball coach in Portal, N.D., where he took his team to the state championships. Then, after teaching in Oregon and Colorado, he returned to Montana, where he eventually retired as a superintendent of schools in Alberton. Settling in Butte later in life, he explored his interest in giving back to others through coaching wheelchair tennis and working with adult literacy projects. He was also a proud patron of education for students in developing countries. His side passions for photography and travel took him around the world, enjoying decades of international experiences. From Munich to Moscow, Toledo to Thailand, he pursued his deep interest in other cultures and the celebration of our shared humanity. He is survived by two sons, a grandson and brothers, Allen and Gene. A private family celebration of his life will occur at a later date.

Margaret Radue-Olson Margaret “Maggie” Michelle Radue-Olson, 25, died Poplar died Oct. 20, 2022. She was living in Moorehead, Minn., at the time of her death. She was born in Wolf Point Nov. 27, 1996, to Michelle Radue and Irvin Olson Sr. She is the youngest of her siblings, Raymond, Heather, Victoria, Cameo, Wayne, Erica and Merciline. She grew up in Poplar and attended Poplar Schools. She was a kind, carefree and loving soul. Anyone who had the privilege of meeting her would tell you that she really was a sweetheart and that she loved to laugh and goof off with her family and friends. She was always at her mother’s side, whether they were going shopping, going to powwows, family events or even just staying home to snack and watch movies together. One of her biggest joys in life was being an auntie to her nieces and nephews. She is survived by her son, Rileigh Youpee; father, Irvin Olson Sr.; six older siblings; grandmothers, Margaret Hapa, Yvette Todd, Isabelle and Eloise Youngman, Donna Black Dog, Cindy Radue, Anne Lester. Funeral services were held Saturday, Nov. 5, at the Poplar Cultural Center. Interment followed at Box Elder Cemetery. Clayton Stevenson Memorial Chapel was entrusted with arrangements.

Helen Lorinda Gess Amestoy Robbins, 94, died Nov. 2, 2022, at her home in Nashua. The daughter of Julius and Alma (Applegren) Gess, she was born Feb. 13, 1928, in Wolf Point. She graduated for Wolf Point High School in 1946 and then went to Concordia College that fall, graduating in 1950. She started working at the Farmers Union in the education department. Then, she met Fred Amestoy and they married in 1953. The couple moved to Hinsdale where they bought a dairy farm and had 20 cows that they milked. Their son, Lyndon, was born in Glasgow July 9, 1954, which was over the Wolf Point Stampede weekend which they never made it too. Three years later, they moved to Wolf Point and had Heather, four years and one day later on July 10, 1958, once again during the Wolf Point Stampede, which they missed again. The family moved to Missoula where she started teaching kindergarten in at their church, Atonement Lutheran. She taught there for six years. Prior to the divorce, she signed a contract to teach second grade in Nashua. She joined Our Redeemer Lutheran Church and took part in the choir and teaching Sunday school. In Nashua, she met bachelor janitor, Robert Robbins, and they married in April 1971. Robert, with 30 years as a janitor, and Helen, with 20 years of teaching, retired and started helping more with Grama Alma. She would go back to the second grade to teach a bird unit and then she would teach calligraphy to the art class. She joined Valley View board for about five years. She joined the senior citizens and made the chokecherry syrup for the pancake suppers that they would have at the ball games. She loved sewing. She would make jean quilts for all her family and friends. At the end of every summer, the children would arrive home with clothes that she made from the material they would pick out. She would do all of the family’s mending. She would also cut squares or strips for the ladies at the church’s quilting club. She played the piano for church and would laugh and say, “Did you hear all the mistakes?” And, they would all say they didn’t hear a thing. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert Robbins; brothers, Victor and Robert Gess; sister, Lorraine Morrison; son, Lyndon Amestoy; and grandsons, Justin and Johnathan Baker. She is survived by her daughter, Heather Johnson of Nashua; and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, Nov. 18, at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church in Nashua with Pastor Bonnie Novak officiating. She will be buried by her husband in the Nashua Cemetery.

Madalynn Grace Raab, 25, of Bozeman died on Thursday evening, Oct. 27, 2022. She was born July 22, 1997, to Jeanette Hellman and Brad Raab in Dickinson, N.D. She was always a friendly little girl with an amazing smile, a wonderful contagious laugh and a great sense of humor. She was the first to make friends with everyone and could converse with anyone. She had the ability at a young age to make these connections, which continued throughout her whole life. She loved most her family, being the baby sister, and all the siblings’ love they shared. She loved snuggling with her momma and received with joy the gushing of the love and attention. She loved all the Denver Broncos, Colorado Rockies and Avalanche games with her dad and family. She attended Brockton Immersion at age four, where she started to learn the Dakota language. She was very intelligent. She always read at least five grades ahead of her grade level. She attended Brockton and Culbertson elementary schools, graduated from Culbertson High School in 2015 at age 17. She competed in sports though her school years, excelling in volleyball, getting her massive ace server skills from her dad. She then attended college at Montana State University in Bozeman. Throughout her work career, she deeply loved her work and work families, especially her boss Jason and family. She was a strong, passionate and independent woman. She was a lifeguard for several summers at the Culbertson pool. At barely 100 pounds, She decided she was going to become a wildland firefighter. She completed the PAC test consisting of three miles, 45 pounds, for 45 minutes to earn her certification. She fought fire for the DNRC out of Lewistown. She loved and lived life to the fullest in the great state of Montana, enjoying nature activities — hiking, snowboarding, downhill skiing, swimming, working out and bowling. She was also a very talented artist and played the piano and clarinet. She is survived by her mother, Jeanette; father, Brad; brothers, Jeraco and Evan of Missoula; sister, Sarah of Williston, N.D.; and grandparents, Magdalena Hellman, Harlan Raab and Verlene (Dave) Goodrich. Funeral services were held Friday, Nov. 4, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Williston, N.D.

Karen Moe, 78, of Poplar died Oct. 19, 2022, in Livingston. Born March 7, 1944, to Peder and Stella Moe, she graduated salutatorian of Poplar High School. She was a Rainbow Girl, a recipient of the Grand Cross of Color and a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. While at the University of Montana, she joined Sigma Kappa Sorority and SPURS National Honor Society. She worked as a pharmacist for 42 years in various pharmacies from Anaconda to Livingston. She married Donald A. Douglas and had two children, Jon Douglas and Kirsten McNurlin. She was preceded in death by her brothers, Peder Moe Jr. and Skulason Moe. She is survived by her children, two grandchildren. Cremation has taken place and a private ceremony will occur in Poplar in the springtime.

Arthur Kenneth Buen, 94, formerly of Nashua died Oct. 28, 2022, in Great Falls. He was born on the Buen homestead Sept. 25, 1928, to Asle and Anna Buen. At that time, he already had four older sisters, Clara, Thelma, Agnes and Bernice. Later, Vivian and Harold were born. In 1933, he started Spring Valley Elementary Country School. All of his eight years, he was the only student in his grade level. In 1946, he graduated Nashua High School. He always started school two weeks late in the fall to help with harvest and two weeks early in the spring to help with seeding the crop. While going to high school, he stayed in the town of Nashua with his sister, Thelma and his brother-in-law, Marvin. In 1948, he started farming the Buen homestead on his own. On June 30, 1954, he married Eleanor Biem at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Poplar. Together, they had four daughters: Linda Lassila, Charlotte Tabacco, Ann Buen and Marjorie Hill. He was a very active leader in the community. Since birth, he was a member of Bethel Lutheran Church of Grain. He was elected to the church council in 1951, serving the roles of treasurer and president. He served continuously for 71 years. He was local Farmers Union president for three years, Montana Farmers Union director for one year, and Montana Farmers Union vice president for 12 years. He served on the Nashua Farmers Union Oil board as a director for 33 years and Nashua Farmers Union Elevator board for seven years. He was involved with the Democratic party, Thrivent, Lukes 100 member for 45 years and served as president for two years. He was an active member of Sons of Norway for 30-plus years. He used his talents of cooking lutefisk and organizing steak fries for various events. He was extremely proud of his Norwegian heritage and enjoyed speaking the language. He loved going dancing with his wife, Eleanor, almost every Saturday night in the winter months. He also loved to play games. He adored all of his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren and loved every moment he spent with them. He loved and truly cared for all people. He was the one you could always count on to lend a helping hand to others. Farming was his passion and he considered the cows his hobby. Once he reached his 80s, he realized it was too much to care for his cows so he sold them. Recently, he sold his farm to Kevin Tweten, a young neighbor, whom he and Eleanor greatly admired. He is survived by his four daughters, Linda Lassila, Charlotte Tabacco, Ann Buen and Marjorie Hill, all of Great Falls; six grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his wife, Eleanor Buen; five sisters, Clara Siewing, Thelma Garsjo, Agnes Garsjo, Bernice Kummerfeldt and Vivian Siewing; and one brother, Harold Buen. Funeral services will be held Saturday, Nov. 5, at 11 a.m. at First Lutheran Church in Glasgow. Burial will be at Highland Cemetery in Glasgow at noon.