Julie McVay

Julie McVay died Saturday, November. 29, 2008, at St. Patrick Hospital.





Julie was born in Williams, Ariz., in 1938 and spent her early years in the Southwest. She moved to Montana in 1952 and made her home in Missoula for more than 50 years.





While in high school, she began working as an elevator operator at the Florence Hotel, and held fond memories of meeting celebrities and famous politicians; she always cherished a kiss from Gary Cooper.





After graduation in 1956, she moved to Seattle to try the “big city,” but moved back after only a year and began her 30-year career at the University of Montana.





She loved being a secretary. Her typing skills on her trusty IBM Selectric were legendary, and her smile and witty personality brought many a laugh on campus. She saw changes spanning from the manual typewriter to the computer, which she claimed was “only good for playing solitaire.” Julie taught a host of beginning secretaries at the university. She cared for them almost as much as she cared for her faculty in the Department of History, for whom she prepared numberless manuscripts, examinations and syllabuses. She always made time for students, those in trouble and those at the head of the class, recognizing no boundaries of class, talent or ability. She loved them all and is probably at least somewhat responsible for many of their degrees. Julie retired in 1991 after more than 20 years as the History Department secretary.





Julie was always a rummager. Most every weekend, she could be found first in line to gather the bargains and treasures that made her annual Christmas party the highlight of the season. She was also naughtily creative, as anyone who ever received one of her special birthday cards could attest.





She was preceded in death by her daughter, Leslie, and her parents.





She is remembered fondly by granddaughter, Portia Perkins; grandson, Teran Smith; brother, Dave Scott; and sister, Jean Anderson.





Julie was a blithe spirit, and those who knew her loved her. She was one of a kind, and we all miss her. Her special circle of friends were caring and offered support every day. A special thank you from her family to them and to Missoula Hospice.





A service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, December. 5, at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church with a luncheon afterward.




Read Julie McVay's Obituary and Guestbook.