18 November 2021

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James Nordhagen

James Nordhagen


James Arnold Nordhagen, 92, of Westby died in Wolf Point on Nov. 6, 2021. The son of Edward and Marie (Gabrielson) Nordhagen, he was born Dec. 14, 1928. He was a lifetime member of the Westby Assembly of God Church, which is where services were held on Wednesday, Nov. 10. He grew up and attended school in Westby. As children, he, his brothers and sisters would spend hours shoveling snow off the lake below their house so they could ice skate. Seventy-one years ago, he married Jennie Nelson on Oct., 23, 1950. They moved to the family farm three miles south of Westby where they raised their three sons, Alan, Jeffrey and Blair. Besides farming, welding and raising cattle, he drove the mail truck to Flaxton, N.D., for six years. He spent several summers custom combining in Kansas with his brother Milo and nephew Arnie. His love of fishing, hunting, horseshoes, motorcycles and airplanes took him many places. Horseshoes was a game that he loved to play and would play frequently, winning several tournaments including two state titles in Montana. He loved to fish and frequented lakes in Montana, North Dakota and Canada. Nelson Reservoir near Fort Peck was a lake he visited often. He loved taking his grandchildren fishing and teaching them everything he knew. Hunting geese, pheasants and deer were also favorite pastimes. He had pride in owning two airplanes and, during the only lesson he had, he landed the plane during a snowstorm for the instructor. He shot approximately 700 coyotes one winter with his brother Bud as his pilot. He loved to talk about his airplane days and all of the flights he would take and all of things he would see. In his later years, he spent many hours making beautiful wood projects for family and friends. He is survived by his wife, Jennie Nordhagen of Westby; sister, Marlys Syme of Plentywood; sons, Alan of Westby, Jeff of Bozeman and Blair of Clancy; and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his brothers, Milo and Bud Nordhagen; sister, Marian Berezay; and infant daughter.

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Gary Leddige

Gary Leddige


Gary Leddige, 60, passed away Friday, Nov. 12, 2021, in the hospital in Helena, Mont. Gary was born Feb. 17, 1961. He liked to build model and loved to hunt and target practice. He liked to travel and spend time with his nephews. He was preceded in death by his father, Dean Leddige; his mother, Joanne Leddige Bonette; his brother, Larry Leddige; and his brother-inlaw, Jim Davis. He is survived by his wife, Nancy; and his sisters, Jackie and Gerry Guldborg, Nina and Pat Nicky and Susan Davis. Cremation has taken place.

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Clifford Ramsbacher

Clifford Ramsbacher


Clifford “John/Johnny” Arthur Ramsbacher, 83, formerly of Fort Peck died Oct. 29, 2021, in Polson. He was born to Frank and Honora Ramsbacher on Oct. 11, 1938, in Park Grove. He was the ninth of 11 children and is survived by one brother. He graduated Glasgow High School in 1958 and married Darlene Brenden in 1960. They were married for 59 years before her death on Feb. 3, 2020. They raised three boys in Fort Peck, Randy of Albuquerque, N.M., Ron of Missoula and John of San Francisco, Calif. He is also survived by four grandchildren. He worked for the U.S. Geological Survey for a number of years until he was offered a trainee position at the Fort Peck hydroelectric power plant. He retired in 1994 as the electrician foreman. In retirement, he delivered oxygen to patients throughout northeast Montana where he enjoyed having a cup of coffee and visiting with his customers. He also served as the mayor of Fort Peck during the time that the town was sold to the residents. After 73 years of living in Fort Peck, he and Darlene sold the home they loved in Park Grove facing the first dredge cuts and moved to Polson on Flathead Lake. They continued to winter in Wellton, Ariz., where they enjoyed meeting new friends and spending time with old friends from eastern Montana who were also snowbirds. He was an avid hunter and fisherman. He enjoyed fishing in the Montana State Walleye Governor’s Cup. He also enjoyed the bowling league in Nashua. The family is planning a memorial for John and Darlene the summer of 2022 in Fort Peck.

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