Dorothy Mae Danford, 86
Dorothy Mae Danford, 86, passed away in Kalispell on Dec. 23, 2016, surrounded by her family.
She was born on July 6, 1930, in Creston to Anna (Sullivan) and Frank Keller on the farm her grandparents homesteaded.
Dorothy attended grade schools in Creston (Echo) and Lower Valley (Rousselle and Hodgson) then graduated from Flathead County High School in 1948. She worked as a machine bookkeeper at Conrad National Bank in Kalispell after graduation.
Starting at age 11, she was active in Lower Valley 4-H clubs with sewing, garden, beef and junior leadership projects for eight years. She made the majority of her clothes after learning to sew, including an award-winning navy blue wool suit. For her third year, deciding she wanted to feed out baby beef, she joined the boy’s 4-H Livestock Club. For six years she showed Black Angus and Herefords in Kalispell, Butte and Missoula, winning many blue and purple ribbons, Reserve Champion and Grand Champion Showmanship.
When her older brother Francis purchased his first car, she taught herself to drive then headed to Kalispell at the age of 14 to get her license. Being told she was too young, she drove home and returned two years later to obtain an official drivers license.
On Oct.13, 1951, she married Neil “Nick” Danford in Kalispell. During the years farming with her husband in the Lower Valley she always had a large garden, canning the vegetables, fruits and the Lake Koocanusa salmon Nick caught. She sold flowers from her beautiful flower garden at the farmers market and drove the grain truck to town, in addition to attending to her children’s various school and 4-H activities.
Dorothy was preceded in death by her husband Neil, and brother Francis Keller.
She is survived by her daughter Cheryl (Reed) Larson of Parker, Colorado, and son Robert (Terri Peterson) Danford of Lower Valley; grandchildren, Marissa (Carl) Jaeger of Denver, Samuel Danford of Kalispell, and stepgrandson Tory Quinnell of Missoula.
There will be a visitation for Dorothy from noon to 1 p.m. on Friday Dec. 30, with services to follow at 1 p.m. at Johnson-Gloschat Funeral Home, officiated by Pastor Kurt Rau. An interment service will follow chapel service at C.E. Conrad Memorial Cemetery. There will be a reception to follow interment services at Sykes’ in downtown Kalispell.