William A. Jensen, 75
Our world lost one of the good guys … William A. Jensen, 75, mercifully passed away at St. Patrick’s Hospital in Missoula from a horrible lung disease on July 4, 2017, after keeping it at bay for many years. He didn’t let it slow him down until the last few months. A friend said recently that he lived large and globally while still appreciating the simple pleasures of family, friends, mud, and nature. In the early hours of July 6, much of Montana felt a 5.8 earthquake. We’re sure it was Bill saying farewell, and wishing Carole a happy birthday.
Bill was born in Los Angeles on Jan. 14, 1942, to Alfred K. and Margaret B. Jensen. He kept many of his childhood friends over the years, as was his habit all his life. In the U.S. Army he spent a year serving on a missile base in Germany. Upon his return, he married Carole Becklund on Dec. 21, 1962, planning a Rhine River cruise this fall to celebrate 55 years of marriage. With a degree in business from Cal State Los Angeles, he and Carole moved to Denver where he had a job waiting at Arthur Young & Co. They lived happily in Denver for four years, during which time they welcomed daughter Julie Carol in May, 1969. They moved in 1971 to Ann Arbor, Michigan, to both work for Youth for Understanding, a teen foreign exchange program. In December, 1973, they moved to southern California where Bill worked in the health care industry. It was there their daughter Anne Marie was born in November, 1974.
A desire to raise their daughters in a more rural environment prompted a move to Montana in 1981. They lived 34 years in Kalispell where Bill taught in the Business Division at Flathead Valley Community College and then became co-owner of a small finance company. Bill and Carole enjoyed trips to many countries including visiting relatives in the Czech Republic. With health issues cropping up, Bill had the foresight to move to a one-story, less-maintenance, nearer-to-daughters condo in the Missoula Rattlesnake in mid-2015. It was a wise and happy move for them both. In spite of Bill’s serious lung issues and the necessity for oxygen 24/7, they made a long-planned trip to Nova Scotia this past May.
It is difficult to name all of Bill’s interests as there were many. He was an accomplished potter, loved dabbling in watercolors and sketching, collected art, both paintings and ceramics, loved reading, card games, learning, listening to music, visiting with friends and he loved a nice cozy dinner party (sometimes for eight or 10 people) with nice wine and good conversation. He was a genius at bringing people together and leaves his family with many happy memories of such gatherings. A time-share in Kauai provided the setting for many happy trips with family and friends, including Czech cousins, Liba, Jarka, Vera and Pius.
Survivors include his loving wife Carole of Missoula, daughter Julie Hartman and her sons Kade of Missoula and Sebastian of Iowa, daughter Anne Hughes and her husband Ted of Missoula, sisters Margaret Jensen, her children Steve, Tim and Susan, and Sally Mason, her children Harvey and Heather, of California, cousins Jeff Bates of Minnesota and Rick Bates of Texas, and cousins Claudia Elfving and Roberta Bednar of California.
Gatherings to remember Bill will be held at Silver Park in Missoula on July 30 from 2 to 4 p.m., and at Buffalo Hill Golf Course in Kalispell on Aug. 2 from 3 to 5 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that any memorials be sent to the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (MOLLI) at University of Montana, c/o K. Hendrickson, 32 Campus Drive, Missoula, MT 59812; or the Alice Ritzman Junior Golf Program at Buffalo Hill Golf Course, c/o Steve Dunfee, 1176 N. Main St., Kalispell, MT 59901; The Clay Studio of Missoula, c/o Shalene Valenzuela, 1106 Hawthorne St., Missoula, MT 59802; or any charity which helps children and/or promotes learning.