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Samuel A. Plainfeather
Samuel Anthony Plainfeather, 89, of Pryor passed to the  other side camp Saturday May 5, 2012 in the Awe Kualawaache Care Center.
Yellowknife “Iishbitchiiashiile” a Crow name given to him by his grandfather Bull Shows, was born July 23, 1922 in Pryor, a son of  Alex Woodtick Plainfeather and Effie Bull Shows. His grandparents, Bull  Shows and Horse raised him traditionally. He received his early  education in Pryor and completed his education at the Flandreau Indian  School and at the Chemawa Indian School. He served in the U.S. Army  during WWII and was honorably discharged.
Sam married Adeline Rock Above on March 7, 1944 in Pryor and the couple made their home in Pryor. She died in 2005.
He was a faithful member of the Catholic Church, was a Big  Lodge Clan member and was a child of Big Lodge. He was also a member of  the Sacred Tobacco Society. He was a traditional Crow singer, who  participated and sponsored numerous Sun Dances. Sam and Adeline  cherished every moment of their trips to the east coast with their girls to Schemitzun Pow Wow.
Preceeded in death; his wife of 61 years Adeline, his  natural parents, Alex Plain Feather and Effie Bull Shows; grandparents,  Bull-Shows and Horse; son Gregory, and two grandsons Ryan Plain Feather  and Dana Falls Down; granddaughter, Russellyn Plain Feather; brothers  Cedric and Lee Plain Feather and Harry Bull Shows; sisters Shirley  Pickett, Iris and Grace Bull Shows.
Survivors include his two sons Russell (Benita) Plainfeather and Hollan Plain Feather; his daughters, Cerise Plainfeather, Renita  Hill, Millie Plainfeather, Billie (Sylvester) Hill, Rebecca (Clayton)  Falls Down, Teatta (Ben) Bear Below and Sara Plainfeather; 35  grandchildren; 75 great grandchildren; eight great, great grandchildren; two grandchildren whom he raised as his own, Samantha Little Light and  Richard Crow; brothers, Adam (Bernice) Singer, Merle, Danny (Mary Ruth), Roland (Kathy) Plain Feather; sisters, Ruby Plain Feather, Judy Bryant, Lorreina Walks, Mary (Nelson) Wallace, Mardell (Daniel) Plain Feather,  Nellie Petty, Nathelle Jefferson, and special friend Charles DeCrane.
Sam™s tobacco society children; Bruce (Myrna) Spotted Bear,  Harry Moccasin, and Gloria Good Luck. Adopted children; Russell and  Shirley Patrick, Kenneth M. Reels of the Manshantucket Pequet Tribe,  Kathy Klink of Chicago, Candace Tarply of New York and Vicki Reardon of  Tucson.
Extended family, maternal side, Bull Shows, Russell, White  Hip, Young Swallow, Old Dwarf, Five and Hogan. Paternal side, Woodtick,  Plain Feather, and descendants of Buffalo Coat.
A special thanks to Awe Kualawaache Care Center staff and Mr. and Mrs. Larson Medicine Horse, Sr.
Rosary was recited Tuesday in the Bullis Funeral  Chapel. Funeral mass was celebrated Wednesday in the Pryor St. Charles  Catholic Mission Church. Interment followed in the Pryor Cemetery.  Bullis Mortuary handled the arrangements.

Forrest Michael Sanders
Forrest Michael Sanders, 61, of Pryor, died May 3, 2012 of  injuries sustained in a one-car rollover accident east of Pryor.
Mike was born June 23, 1950 in Crow Agency, a son of Lee and Georgia Micklovich Sanders. He moved with his family to numerous  locations, until settling in the Canyon Ferry area, where he completed  his education. Following his education, he entered the US Marine and  later received his discharge.
He operated the Ok-A-Beh Marina for a short time and worked  on a fishing boat in Washington. However, he mainly worked on  construction projects in the Northwest. He was a proud holder of a boat  captain™s license.
His parents preceded Mike in death.
Survivors include his sons Dennis and Cole Sanders; a sister Dixie Heisey; his brothers Dennis and Rodney Sanders and two  grandchildren Amara Brum and Dain Sanders.
Funeral services were held Tuesday in the Bullis Funeral  Chapel. Private interment will be held in Pryor. Bullis Mortuary has  been entrusted with the arrangements.

Edythe T. McCleary
Edythe T. McCleary, loving mother, grandmother, sister, aunt and friend went to her heavenly home May 4, 2012 due to Parkinson™s  disease. Edythe was born December 23, 1928 to John E. Sr. and Minnie  Burton Turley at St. Vincent Hospital and was raised on the Mountain  Home Ranch, Musselshell, where she loved to play in the hills and learn  all she could in the one-room schoolhouse.
If we were to name one single characteristic of Edythe™s it  was simply this: unconditional love. She lived it; she shared it; she  covered our family with it. Her life-long love was John D. McCleary “her Johnny” who she knew like a book and loved cover-to-cover. Her passion  was being “Mom” and she was that to her four children until her final  breath.
Her father™s passion for education was passed on to all of  the five Turley kids. At age four, Mom followed her older sister Lou to  the Mountain Home School the first day and just kept attending. She  graduated from eighth grade in 1941 and lived with Lou while they  attended high school in Roundup where she graduated in 1945.
At age sixteen she began her studies at Montana State  College (now MSU) in Bozeman receiving a B.S. in Commercial Science in  1949. She proudly received her Golden Diploma in 1999 and her Silver  Diploma in 2009. A Bobcat through and through she proudly wore her  Bobcat socks and her “14” Jersey (she loved to watch Everett Gilbert  run!) while watching Bobcat football on television.
When dad returned after his army stint he also entered MSC.  These “Bull Mountain Sweethearts” married on August 19, 1947 at the St.  Honorata Catholic Church in Musselshell.
While Dad finished school Mom worked as a stenographer in  the Agricultural Economics Department at MSC. Following his graduation  they moved to Win-Del Ranches in Ennis where Dad was cattle foreman and  Mom was the ranch secretary. She continued using her education when they moved to Pullman Washington where Dad attended Washington State  University. Mom was first a secretary to non-faculty personnel and then  became secretary to the Dean of the Graduate school until 1956 when Dad  graduated and they moved to Worden, Mont. where Dad setup his first  Veterinary Practice. Mom faithfully supported Dad as a part-time  Veterinary Assistant both in Worden and when they moved to Hardin in  1959. She continued working with dad through 1986 as assistant and  bookkeeper while also being a substitute teacher in the Hardin schools  from 1975 through 1985.
Her professional life began to turn when she took on the  Welcome Wagon role through the Hardin Chamber of Commerce from 1984-85.  She was good at it! (No surprise to any of us.) Others recognized her  talent for business and sales. Thus, in 1986 Edythe, at the age of 55,  took on an entirely new role as Executive Director of Custer Country,  Inc. one of the six tourism regions in Montana. She was a valiant  champion of the communities and businesses of eastern Montana believing  that every part of Custer Country, from Wibaux to Laurel deserved to be  heralded as beacons of tourism in Montana. She strove for and achieved  excellence in marketing and promotion for the large eastern portion of  our state.
Her integrity, keen mind and organization skills were sought by the Old West Trail Association where she was on the board of  directors from 1988-92; First Interstate Bank, Hardin, where she served  on the board of directors from 1991-99; the Virginia City/Nevada City  Preservation Task Force from 1996-97; the Lewis & Clark Bicentennial Advisory Council 1995-99; and, Governor Marc F. Racicot appointed her  to the Governor™s Tourism Advisory Council where she served from  1989-99.
While working for and serving the people of eastern Montana  she also was a member of the St. Joseph™s Altar Society, was a proud  member of and strong supporter of the Big Horn County Republican Central Committee and helped promote the area™s cattle industry through Big  Horn County CowBelles.
In 1999 Edythe retired from her position with Custer  Country, Inc. yet she never stopped believing in the communities she  served or the goals of ensuring tourism equality in the region.
Through this journey her number one profession, however, was being Mom. Her four children, Kathy, Patti, Johnny and Mike were the  central focus of her life. She raised them with love, compassion,  forgiveness, endless support and encouragement and her unfathomable  ability to truly embody unconditional love. From the moment she bore us  to her dying day she loved us unquestionably. We honestly don™t know  what the days and years ahead will be like without our tireless  champion.
Yet even we acknowledge that while she always said each of  us was “practically perfect” the qualifier was omitted when it came to  her eight grandchildren. Steph, Dan, Justin, Miles, Sage, Matt, Garrett, and Katie gave her endless joy. Each was able to spend time with her  during her final days at home and we know their lives will be guided by  her example. David McCleary, her beloved five-year-old great grandson  will help us share an expression of her love which of late included his  phrase “love you to the moon and back.” She said this to each of us  often especially in her nightly litany: “Good Night. God bless you. I  love you, to the moon and back.”
Mom loved to dance; as a young woman the higher the high  heel the better! She loved to golf and enjoyed many years of great fun  with Mom and Dad™s friends at the Fort Custer golf club in Hardin.
They planned theme parties, socials, golf outings and  just-plain-fun. The therapy of going out on the course just to hold a  club was not only good for her in the past couple of years but an  incentive as well on days when her energy waned. She loved to laugh and  to listen to her family and friends when they™d sing (we never did that  enough for her.) One thing she did not like was the spot light. Sorry  Mom, this time we will ignore your wishes. You and your life must be  heralded.
In 2000 she and John moved to Billings where they lived  close enough to enjoy the many activities of her grandchildren in the  area. They took pleasure in traveling and Edythe™s sisters Lou Bell and  Mary Cooley joined them for high adventure in Hawaii, Canada, Panama  Canal, and Ireland.
Wherever she went, whatever she did, Edythe embodied  integrity, a strong work ethic, a keen interest in all she met (she once told her daughter Patti, “I just like people”), a desire to learn and a belief that she was truly blessed.
Her faith guided her throughout life and was the cornerstone of her unconditional love. She constantly counted her blessings and  would often pick up her own spirits by listing the things she was  blessed with: from the yellow finch outside her window to the members of her family, always her family she gave thanks to God for giving her.
Edythe was a member of St. Pius Catholic Church in Billings  following her long-time parish life at St. Joseph™s Catholic Church in  Hardin. As with John, Edythe instilled a strong sense of faith of  Catholicism in her four children. For years at St. Pius, Edythe  volunteered as a Eucharistic Minister to bring the body of Christ and a  prayer to the homes of parishioners unable to attend Mass, and these  individuals became special people in Mom™s life.
Following Dad™s death in 2007 Parkinson™s began to take root and often robbed her of the things she loved to do most, visit, golf.  Our “Speedy Edy” couldn™t take care of others as she was prone to do,  but it never, ever robbed her of her spirit. Her doctors and physical  therapists always were in awe of her determination to follow whatever  guidelines were given for she was resolved to stay as healthy as  possible for as long as possible.
Over the past few years Mom traveled to visit friends,  family and to be with her grandchildren and great-grandson for holidays  and special events. Her stated wish was: “I want to feel a little bit  better and stay in my home.” Her daughter Patti put aside her own life  goals in 2010 in order to provide daily assistance and coaching. Along  with Kathy who stayed with her nights and weekends as often she could  and her sons John and Mike who came when they were able, Edythe™s  request to enjoy life as much as possible in the comfortable  surroundings of her home was achieved.
On April 19 when she™d made her choice to return home and  let death come naturally she said, “I™m not afraid of dying. I know  there is a heaven.” She said she wanted to tell everyone something but  knew she wouldn™t be able to speak to everyone she loved; plus, it was  physically difficult for her to speak due to Parkinson™s as well as the  emotional nature of her message. Thus, we promised we would share her  words: “I had a good life. I have been so blessed by all my family, all  my friends, and so many good neighbors.”
In her final days Mom shared fond stories full of color,  humor, love, faith and ultimately, final goodbyes with her children,  grandchildren, her sister Mary, close family and friends.
Every moment was cherished and considered a blessing as God  prepared a home for her reunion with John in heaven. As our family  gathered around her one evening this past week our brother John said:  “Mom, you taught us how to live; now you are teaching us how to die.”  Yes, she did. Her life of unconditionally loving will continue on in the hearts and lives of her family. We feel richly blessed.
Mom was preceded in death by her parents, her loving husband John, and her brothers John Turley and Martin Turley. She is survived  by her ever grateful children, Kathy of Billings, Patti (Tom) Dunbar of  Billings, John (Lea) of Lodge Grass, Mike (Carlotta) of Bismarck, N.D.,  her grandchildren Stephanie Dunbar of Boulder, Colo., Dan Dunbar of  Longmont, Colo., Justin (Sue) McCleary of Sheridan, Wyo., Miles McCleary of Ontario Ore., Sage McCleary, of Bozeman, Matt, Garrett and Katie  McCleary all of Bismarck; and great grandson David McCleary of Dayton  Wyo.. Her sisters, Lou Bell, Great Falls, Mary Cooley, Musselshell,  sisters in law Faye Turley of Billings, and Madelyn Turley of Locust  Grove, Va., her Aunt Willy Burton of Seaside, Ore. and many special  nieces, nephews, cousins and wonderful friends.
A Vigil Service celebrating Edythe™s life was held May 8 at  St. Pius X Parish. Funeral Mass was held May 9 also at St. Pius X  Parish, 717 18th St. West, in Billings. Burial was at the Musselshell  Cemetery in Musselshell, Mont.
Our family thanks Dr. Neal Sorensen for his care and the way he raised Mom™s spirits (especially their shared love of golf and the  Bobcats.)
We also thank Riverstone Hospice and Synergy HomeCare for  their gentle professionalism and true caring as they helped us in Mom™s  final days.
Memorials may be made to the Big Horn County Historical  Society, Route 1, Box 1206A, Hardin, Mont. 59034, to Friends of  Musselshell School, PO Box 14, Musselshell, MT 59059, or the charity of  your choice.
Michelotti-Sawyers Mortuary was in charge of arrangements.

BIG HORN COUNTY TOWNS

WYOLA,

LODGEGRASS

, HARDIN,

CUSTER  BATTLEFIELD

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