Mary L. McCabe

Mary Lucille Bolkovatz McCabe passed away at the age of 97 at Beehive Assisted living in Missoula on April 26, 2014.
Mary was born the third of ten children to George and Catherine (Zunic) Bolkovatz on June 20, 1916 in Anaconda, Montana. Mary was the quiet one in an out going family: her parents, seven sisters, and two brothers were the center of her life.
Mary was raised and educated in Anaconda attending St. Peter's Grade School and St. Peter's Catholic High Schools. After high school she attended Butte Business College. She started her working career as a receptionist for Dr. Long, MD in Anaconda.
On April 30, 1939, she married Francis "Frank" Lester McCabe of Anaconda. Frank was an ironworker and after their marriage they traveled the country from New Orleans to Seattle following work. She loved the travel and getting to see the nation by train and car. When Frank joined the U.S. Navy after the start of World War II, she moved to Los Angeles to work in the steno pool for Lockheed Aircraft Plant. Two of her sisters Theresa and Agnes soon followed her to join the work force on the production side at Lockheed. Frank was stationed in San Diego so they shared good times when he was in the States on leave. She fondly remembered living in California and the friends she made during that time. As the war neared the end she returned to Anaconda where her first daughter Marilyn was born. When the War ended Frank returned to Anaconda where they made their home. Roberta, a second daughter was born to the couple.
Mary returned to work as a secretary at the Butte Anaconda Pacific Railroad (BAP) in Anaconda before a 30-year career as a stenographer at Warm Springs State Hospital. For many of those years she worked as the secretary for the superintendent through several changes of administrations. She retired in 1985. Mary always enjoyed her work and the people she worked with became her life long friends.
Mary was an independent woman who raised her children with pride after Frank died in 1962. She stressed to her daughters the importance of a good education that would make it possible to establish a career that would allow them to always take care of themselves.
With her extended family, daughters, and their families, and friends she enjoyed traveling, camping, cross country skiing, downhill skiing, hiking, snowmobiling and spending time at the rustic family cabin in Red Lion Canyon near Georgetown Lake. Mary always enjoyed being with a group of family and friends and cooked many Sunday dinners for those special to her. After her retirement she regularly traveled to Missoula and Stevensville to be with her daughters and grandchildren. She made an annual trip to California to visit her sister Catherine Brady and nieces Maureen (Brady) Hampton and Patsy (Brady) Schmidt, and their families. Travel remained a great joy to Mary, especially her trips to the Soviet Union and Slovenia that she made with her family and friends. In one of her adventures, at the height of the Cold War, she and her traveling companions separated from the group and managed to get lost at night on the subway while visiting Moscow. Mary had other adventures cross country skiing, downhill skiing, and snowmobiling with her sister Ang, brother Walter, brother an sister-in-law Joe and Ag and friends Hazel and Harvey Hadeen.
Mary moved to Missoula in 2002 to be near her daughters, grandchildren, and sisters as dementia became a problem and eventually moved to Beehive Assisted living in 2009.
She was preceded in death by her: parents Catherine and George Bolkovatz, husband Frank McCabe, sisters and brothers-in-law Ann and John Hogan, Catherine Brady, Angela "Ang" and Clarence Keiser, Barbara "Bobbie" Ashton, Agnes and Sid Bailey, Theresa and Bob Tocher, Dorothy and Bill Montgomery, sister-in-law Agnes Bolkovatz, mother-in-law Nora McCabe, brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law John and Helen McCabe, and brothers-in-law Joe, Victor, and Pat McCabe, sister-in-law and brother-in-law Nora and Pat Sugrue, and sister-in-law Mary McCabe; nieces Signey Bailey, Carol Kieser Parker, Gwendolyn McCabe, Patricia McCabe; nephews Jack Hogan, and Gene McCabe, former in-laws Francis Brady, and Fred Ashton, and Nora McCabe.
She is survived by her brothers Joseph "Joe" Bolkovatz and Walter "Wally" Bolkovatz of Anaconda; daughter and son-in-law Marilyn and Pat Ryan, Missoula, Roberta Nicholas and friend John Croft, Stevensville; grandchildren Jamie (Clem) Lockman, Paul Ryan of Missoula, Amy Goicoechea (Sean) of Kalispell, Kari (Andre) Marshall of Seattle; great grandchildren Kristen Hensley, Andria Lockman, Tyler Lockman, Elliot Lockman, Camden Lockman, Gwen Lockman, Zoe Ryan, Kash Goicoechea, Ella Goicoechea, and Karson Goicoechea; many nieces and nephews, former in-laws Ron Nicholas, and Stacey Scarborough.
The family wishes to express gratitude and thanks to the staff at Beehive and Partners in Home Care.
Services will be held 10:00 am, May 23 at Christ the King Church, 1400 Gerald Av, Missoula, with burial in Anaconda at 4:00 the same day. A wake will be held May 22, at 7:00 pm at Garden City Funeral Home.
In lieu of flowers, donations to one of the following non-profits would honor Mary's memory: Stevensville Teachers Association, 300 Park St, Stevensville, MT 59870, Montana Professional Teachers Foundation, 1232 E 6th Ave, Helena, MT 5960; Christ the King, 1400 Gerald, Missoula, MT 59801, Anaconda Catholic Community, 217 W Pennsylvania, Anaconda 59711.



Read Mary McCabe's Obituary and Guestbook on www.missoulafuneralhomes.com.