Loretta May McKay, 72

Loretta May McKay, 72, of Missoula, passed away surrounded by loved ones on Saturday, Aug. 6, 2016, at St. Patrick Hospital.

She was born in Kalispell, on May 4, 1944, to parents Roy Martin and Rose May Roberts. She was the eldest daughter of nine siblings.

Loretta married Elwood Thomas McKay on January 22, 1968. They met at a restaurant called The Hut in Kalispell, where she worked as a waitress.

Beginning in her early teens, Loretta mainly worked in the food service industry. Utilizing her skills, hard work, and determination, Loretta and Elwood became proprietors of the Gay ‘70s Cafe, a restaurant business in Bigfork, which was very successful and popular during the early to late 1970s. After the restaurant sold, Loretta found employment at the Montana Veterans Home in Columbia Falls as a baker, where many had the fortune to enjoy her delicious baked goods and cooking for nearly twenty-five years.

Loretta’s was forced into an early retirement when she was diagnosed with cancer, which nearly took her life more than once. Thanks to her strong will and modern medical advancements in cancer treatment, she was able to fight her way into remission and continue doing the things she loved the most, such as cooking, gardening, sewing and spending quality time with her family and everyone she loved.

Being an enormously kind-hearted and generous person, she would offer help to anyone. She was above all things a loving mother, not only to her own family but to her siblings and even people she hardly knew. She took in and cared for numerous people throughout her life, helping them through their hardships, feeding them, giving them a place to stay, and helping them get back on their feet.

Preceding her in death are both parents; siblings Jackie, Butch, Mervin and Hazel; step-son Raymond; son-in-law Jimmy Hume; brother-in-law Jim Augusta, and grandson, Alberto.

She is survived by Elwood McKay, her loving husband and friend of 48 1/2 years. She is also survived by sister Bobbi VanHam and Sam Scott in Kalispell, brother Ed Lauman in Kalispell, sister Rose and husband Earl Wildes in Washington state, brother Duane Roberts in Arizona, daughter Sherri and husband Ralph Carter in Nevada, daughter Beverly Hume of Kalispell, son Thomas McKay of Missoula, daughter Carla and husband Carlos Cruz Hernandez of Missoula, step-son Wayne Winter in South Carolina, grandchildren Krystl McKay, Andrea Barton, Travis Carter, Mercedes Cruz, Mateo Cruz, and great-grandchildren Skylr McKay, Shylow Barton, Deylene Barton, and Evrette Carter.

Loretta was a very humble woman; therefore, it was her wish not to have a formal funeral service.

In lieu of flowers or other contributions, the family requests that any donations be sent to the Montana Cancer Center. Go to www.mtcancer.com, and click on the “donation” link.

Loretta was a caring and loving wife, mother, sister, aunt, grandmother, great-grandmother and friend. She will be profoundly missed by her family and all who knew her.