Cora Kerestes

Cora Ellen Kerestes, 86, passed away

April 12, 2011. She is now with her Lord and Savior. She is joined

again with her beloved husband, Albert.

Cora was proud of having come from

strong pioneer stock — her grandparents settled in the valley in

1904. She was born Oct. 14, 1924, to Floyd and Edith Payne at her

Pearson grandparents’ home outside of Columbia Falls.

She had many fond memories of life as a

child living in logging camps up in the mountains. She attended

school in Whitefish, graduating in 1942. Days after graduation,

Cora boarded a bus to Washington, D.C., where a job awaited her in

the clerical pool for the U.S. Army. Later, she transferred to

Newark, N.J., and when the war effort wound down, she went to work

for Newark Bell. It was in New Jersey, at Dreamland Roller Rink,

that she met Albert.

After an exciting courtship and several

trips to Montana, Cora and Albert were married Aug. 31, 1947, at

Christ Lutheran Church in Whitefish. They returned to New Jersey

and worked a few years before deciding they wanted to make their

home in Montana. In 1950, they moved back to Whitefish.

Cora loved people and lived life to the

fullest. She loved square dancing, camping, her church and her many

friends. She taught Sunday school for years and enjoyed working

with youth. Cora enjoyed doing genealogy and spent years

researching and recording the family’s history and stories as well

as the history of the upper Flathead Valley.

Cora was preceded in death by her

parents, Floyd and Edith Payne, and her husband of 61 years,

Albert.

Cora leaves one son, Glen Kerestes and

wife Kathy, of Billings; one granddaughter, Amy Larsen and husband

Chris, of Roundup; and twin great granddaughters, Megan and

Elizabeth Larsen, of Roundup. She also leaves behind numerous

cousins and the countless friends she has made everywhere she has

gone.

The family would like to thank everyone

at The Springs at Whitefish, who Cora thought of as not caregivers

and residents but as her family. Also special thanks goes to the

staffs of the North Valley Hospital and Christ Lutheran Church, and

all of Cora’s friends for the help and support they have provided

to Cora and her family.

A memorial service April 18, 2011.

Interment was at the Fairview Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, a donation may be

made to the Klothes Kloset at 288 N. Nucleus Ave. in Columbia

Falls., or to the North Valley Hospital Foundation at 1600 Hospital

Way in Whitefish.