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03/07/2015 - Irwin J. Eleson
A funeral service celebrating the life of Irwin J. Eleson, age 93, of Helena, MT and formerly of Crawford, NE, will be at 1:00 PM on Friday, March 6, 2015 at the Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch Chapel in Billings, MT. A reception will be held following the service.
Burial will follow the reception at Terrace Gardens Cemetery in Billings, MT.
A memorial service will be at 2:00 PM on Saturday, March 7, 2015 at the Helena Alliance Church in Helena, MT.
A memorial has been established. Donations in Irwin’s name may be sent to the Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch, 1732 South 72nd Street West, Billings, MT, 59106, or to a charity of donor’s choice.
Irwin passed away on February 27, 2015 in Helena, MT. He was born on December 5, 1921 to Loyd and Maude Violet Eleson in Elk Point, SD. He was the youngest of four brothers (Clarence, Ernest and Floyd) and grew up on the family ranch near Crawford, NE.
In 1944, Irwin met Marie Soester, and they married in 1946. Irwin and Marie had a marriage that was a testament to love. They were devoted to each other and to the Christian faith that became a significant part of their lives, beginning in 1948 when they got involved with Bethel Bible Church. So important was their belief in God and practice of Christianity that in 1952, they decided to leave the family ranch so that Irwin could attend seminary at the Omaha Bible Institute. He graduated in 1957 and was ordained as a minister the same year. His first and only church was the Oaks Community Church, a non-denominational church located between Henderson and Emerson, IA, where he and his family lived for four years. After that, he worked briefly as a field representative at the Ozark Bible Institute and was a traveling minister for a short time, preaching in churches around the country, with his family providing the musical program for each service.
In 1964, Irwin took a job with what was then the Yellowstone Boys Ranch (Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch) in Billings, MT, where he worked until his first “retirement” in 1993 and his final retirement in 2011. For most of his years at YBGR, he was a field representative and worked tirelessly with ranchers in the Montana, Wyoming and North Dakota region, obtaining donations of calves, horses, land, mineral rights and cash contributions that helped YBGR expand and improve its services to children. He loved his job and traveled thousands of miles each year to work with hundreds of ranching families in the region. It was his knowledge of their work that made ranchers respect him, but it was his passion for the mission of the YGBR that made him so successful at his job. He believed that children were better off after being cared for by the YGBR.
Irwin and Marie had five children, Linda Marie (Fjelstad); Cindy Anne (Christensen); William James; Thomas Lee; and Charity Joy; nine grandchildren Kim, Michelle, Lisa, Melinda, Shelly, Scott, Katyana, Celia and Tevis; thirteen great-grandchildren; and three great-great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his mother, father, three brothers, wife Marie, and eldest daughter Linda.
His family will remember Irwin as a force of nature who had a thousand stories to tell. He was a committed and devoted husband and a man who was honest and generous with those he met. He taught the value of work and honesty and a love of the earth. He loved his life and lived it with strength, joy and integrity.
See more at: http://retzmemorials.com/obituaries/irwin-j-eleson-age-93-of-helena-formerly-of-billings-mt/#sthash.GHlnJksZ.dpuf
Retz Funeral Home & Crematory of Helena, MT is in charge of arrangements for Irwin J. Eleson.
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