Mary Elizabeth 'Bette' Boyd Kelley, 91
At age 91, Mary Elizabeth “Bette” Boyd Kelley “went home to be with the Lord” on Friday, Dec. 10, 2010.
Bette was born Aug. 28, 1919, outside Williston, N.D., to George and Teresa (Conlin) Boyd. Bette joined older brothers Hugh and Mark and sister Dora. The family was completed with the addition of Neil a couple of years later.
The Boyd children were mostly raised in Flaxville. Bette graduated from Flaxville High School in 1937 and attended Northern Montana College in Havre the following year.
In the meantime, George and Teresa moved to Valier, where George managed a Greely grain elevator. On one of her trips home to Valier, Bette met Pat Kelley. As the story goes, he saw her walking and offered her a ride. Pat’s reputation having preceded him, Bette said, “No thanks.” Pat then pulled his car across the sidewalk and said, “Hop in.” The rest, as they say, is history.
Pat and Bette were married June 1, 1939. They had five children together and after several Border Patrol-related moves, settled in Sunburst, where they raised their family and eventually retired from government service in 1973.
Bette and Pat moved to Lakeside in 1976, and Pat passed away in 1978. They were very involved in the American Legion, and Bette was the Montana Department Auxiliary President in 1964. Following Pat’s death, Bette took a job as Department Secretary for the American Legion Auxiliary for the next decade. She retired in 1989 and moved to Spokane.
Over the years Bette enjoyed gardening, playing cards, bowling, golf and especially traveling. She traveled to Europe and Ireland several times, often with her sister, Dora, and other close friends. Bette and Dora spent about 10 winters together in Arizona basking in the sunshine.
In the last decade Bette kept her mind sharp as a voracious reader, playing bridge with friends and working on the daily crossword puzzle in the newspaper.
Bette had a life-long devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church. Bette was loved and appreciated by friends and family and will be deeply missed.
Bette was preceded in death by her husband, Pat, and her oldest daughter, Randa.
She is survived by her sons, Bob and Jan Kelley of Thompson Falls, Doug and Cathy Kelley of Los Angeles, and Don and Beverly Kelley of Missoula ; and daughter Diane and Janie Kelley of Everett, Wash. Bette is also survived by 10 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at St. Aloysius Catholic Church in Spokane on Saturday, Dec. 18. A celebration of Bette’s life will be scheduled in the Flathead Valley next summer.