Gloria Jones

Gloria Fay Heibein Jones, 81, passed away peacefully in Kalispell after a short, non-COVID respiratory illness on Nov. 26, 2020, with her husband Floyd and her four children, Lynda, Cindy, Terry and Charla at her bedside.

Gloria was born in Coleman, Alberta, on June 30, 1939, and moved to Eureka, Montana, after second grade where she lived with her father Frank, mother Hildur Gertrude, and two younger sisters, Carol and Jeannie. She had a wonderful life growing up in Eureka and would tell us stories of fishing, camping, huckleberry picking, gardening and spending time with many of her Canadian relatives from the Crowsnest Pass. She graduated from Lincoln High School in 1958 and attended one semester of college at Northern Montana College in Havre, majoring in elementary education.

Gloria moved to Kalispell in 1959 where she worked for three years in the advertising department of the Kalispell Daily Inter Lake newspaper. One night, while cruising Kalispell Main Street with Judy Kirby, she saw Floyd in another car and commented about how cute he was. Judy set them up on a blind date, and after only four months and a disputed $20 bill they were married in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, on Sept. 10, 1960. Floyd and Gloria celebrated 60 years of marriage this September. They raised four children, six dogs, a cat and a frog.

Gloria worked at the Flathead High School cafeteria for 21 years, many of these years as the lead cook, providing nutritious meals to thousands of grade school, middle school and high school students. After retiring from the school district, she worked at the Kalispell Walmart in both the toy and pharmacy department, frequently asking us to shop there so her stock would go up. After Floyd retired from the Columbia Falls Anaconda Aluminum plant in December of 1996, they purchased a motor home and spent their first winter of retirement in Arizona. That motor home traveled all over the USA from Minneapolis to Sacramento to visit with their children and grandchildren. In 1999 they purchased their Bitterroot Lake lot and enjoyed “lake life” for 20 summers. Mom was always happiest when surrounded by her extended family playing card games (Ten Penny), finding bargains at garage sales, cooking, quilting, knitting or gardening.

Gloria is survived by her husband, Floyd Jones, mother, Gertrude Heibein of Kalispell, younger sister Carol Cogar (Gene) of Big Arm, daughter Lynda (Chip) Storle of Kalispell, daughter Cindy Hollenbaugh (Darren) of Spokane, son Terry Jones (Chrisi) of Folsom, California, and daughter Charla Weber (Brian) of Columbia Falls; nine grandchildren, Keith (Allie), Jordan, Kristen, Brendan, Les (Samantha), Andrew, Jacob, Eric and Emilee; and three great-grandchildren. Gloria’s mother, Hildur Gertrude Heibein is a resident at Immanuel Lutheran Home in Kalispell and will celebrated her 102nd birthday on Dec. 4.

Gloria was preceded in death by her father, Frank Heibein in 1982 and her sister Jeannie Lalum in 2012.

Gloria was a devoted wife, a loving sister, a perfect mother, a fun-loving grandmother, and a treasured great-grandmother who will be missed by all. We will be having a celebration of her life next summer in Eureka.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Wings Regional Cancer support (an organization that helps with out of pocket costs associated with cancer treatment) at www.wingsnwmontana.org.

Friends are encouraged to visit the website at www.buffalohillfh.com to leave notes of condolence for the family. Buffalo Hill Funeral Home and Crematory is caring for the family.