Nancy Forden, 78

Nancy "Sassi" Kathryn Forden, 78, passed away Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024, at the Whitefish Care and Rehabilitation Center. She was the daughter of C. Harold (Dutch) Brewer and Mabel Muriel Murchison. She was born Sept. 27, 1946, in Kalispell General Hospital and resided in Kalispell until 1958 when the family moved to Missoula. She later moved to Helena and attended Carroll College. From there she moved to the Seattle area for a short period and then returned to Kalispell where she resided until her death.

She had a lengthy period of employment at the Flathead County Library followed by several years with the Flathead County Justice Center. She married David Forden in 1967, and he preceded her in death. They had one son, Kenneth Phillip Forden. 

She is survived by her son Kenn, her grandson Brian, (wife Jaime) and five great-grandchildren; two brothers, Rod Brewer (wife Linda) of Hamilton, and Ken Brewer (wife Kristine Lee) of Florence; two nieces, Cathy Oleson (husband Eric), May Brewer, and Robin Lee-Beusan (husband Rob Beusan); two nephews, Chris Brewer (wife Dana Youngman) and David Brewer (wife Ashley); six great-nieces and nephews.

Sassi had a lifelong love of animals, especially cats and dogs. Many four-footed pets lived a luxurious lifestyle in her care. While working at Flathead County Library she wore many hats including library business manager, bookmobile librarian, and one of the acting directors. As she steered the orange vehicle from school to school, she was the face of the only librarian some county children knew. As times changed, she embraced the internet and made many friends all over the world even traveling as far as Australia to meet some of them in person.

Sassi’s love of music led her to become an avid supporter of music. Living in Montana, she befriended many of the state’s musicians and enjoyed following their careers. But she wasn’t limited to Montana. There were plenty of special trips to Seattle, Reno, Las Vegas, and Spokane to see concerts in bigger venues. Not surprisingly, these places also had bingo games and there was always time for bingo!

Sassi was one of the first volunteers working with the Helpnet First Call for Help network established to provide free anonymous help to people in need of information and support in the valley.

She loved reading and was always ready to enjoy a good book, especially mysteries. That made working in a library a good choice since she would have gone there nearly every day anyway. Her mother’s many library friends became hers as well as she became active in the Montana Library Association. She made friends quickly and did so wherever she went.

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 24, at the Johnson-Gloschat Funeral Home in Kalispell. It was Sassi’s wish that any memorial contributions be made to the donor’s local Humane Society.