Jay Downen, 81

Jay Downen, bon vivant, lifelong learner, lover of his family and friends and his Irish history, passed away on April 21 at 81 years old. Jay's wife Marla, son Bo and daughter Kate will continue to feel his spark in music, words, nature, laughter with friends and the curiosities of the world.

Jay’s sense of humor and kindness were disarming and made him a quick friend to many he encountered across his life. He was born and raised in Springfield, Illinois, by Frances and Otis J. Downen, before leaving for college and law school in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His adventurous spirit led him to southern California, where he worked with the LAPD and met lifelong pals with whom he dove for abalone and lobster, surfed small waves, and explored the mountains and beaches of the western US and Mexico. It was also where he met his wife, Marla, on Halloween at a party where Jay, dressed as a bike cop and wielding a banana in his holster, asked Marla to donuts and coffee.

Jay and Marla briefly moved back to central Illinois, where they owned and operated a small newspaper before Jay went to work for the Governor and then the state’s electric cooperatives. In that job, he found a passion for working on behalf of rural utility members. That and his love of the mountain west led him to Montana, where he began his 40-year career working on behalf of electric cooperatives, as both the head of the statewide association and as a Flathead Electric board member. Jay loved his work because it connected him to salt-of-the-earth, good-hearted folks in every corner of Montana and beyond. It also deepened his commitment to advocating for fairness, hard-working people, and underdogs.

Jay and Marla raised Bo and Kate in Great Falls and Whitefish, where he inspired and encouraged them and many of their friends, as a parent, friend, teacher and coach. He loved the dogs and horses he cared for throughout his life, and imparted that tenderness for animals to his kids.

He was a self-taught performing musician, quick quoter of classical poetry and literature, fly fisherman and river rafter, top chef and lover of travel: most of all, Ireland, France, and anywhere he could drive to from home, including northern Canada and Alaska.

Jay was a generous friend to many, always eager to help out and offer support, and his joie de vivre was infectious. He loved where he lived, and in both Great Falls and Whitefish, Jay and Marla’s has been a home away from home for loved ones, acquaintances and friends of friends — a warm, buzzing gathering place where music, conversation, food and laughter are plentiful. He was attuned to the magic of wild creatures and wild places, including the North Fork of the Flathead River, where a celebration of life will take place this summer.