Doris Marie Huber-Schillinger was born on March 24, 1925 in Ossian, Iowa to Henry & Alvina (Scheidel) Hemesath. She passed peacefully with a spiritual heart at home on May 19, 2014. Doris was the only sister to five brothers, Alfonse (Funzy), Joe, Art, Elmer and Henry (Jr.) all of Ossian, Iowa. Doris spent her childhood working on the family dairy farm in Ossian and taking care of her mother. At a young age she learned how to cook and develop a nurturing spirit for animals. Taming a young fox and keeping it as a pet was the start. Her cooking skills helped her years later when she worked for her brother Art, managing his roller rink. She was the only chef for the rink and also played in a band with her brother that provided live music for the skaters.
Doris arrived in Montana by replying to a job advertisement that was posted by the Huber Farm, in the Ossian Bee. The position was for a housekeeper/cook for a farm in Vida, Montana. She took a leap of faith, accepted the position and boarded a train that took her West. This is where she met, fell in love with and later married Paul Leonard Huber on June 25, 1951. They celebrated 30 years together and raised 9 children in a small, ever bustling farming household. Doris was a highly energetic spirit and never seemed to tire. A typical day for her started at 5:00 a.m. with the milking of cows and taking care of the farm animals, followed by a full course breakfast, lunch and dinner for an army, tending to an acre of a garden, hanging laundry outside, baking 20 loaves of bread, canning, nurturing 200 baby chicks every spring and lending a helping hand outside with the men. Her duties and abilities were endless and she performed them with such ease and no complaints. Doris’s enthusiasm and love overflowed into the community as well. She was very active in the church were she played the organ and sang with her daughters. The Faith Lutheran Home for the elderly was also brightened with her musical skills when she played the accordion for them on a regular basis, singing as she played. Doris had a keen ear for music. She had the artistic ability to listen to a melody and then turn right around and play it on the piano or accordion. She never read music and did not take a music lesson her entire life. The Christmas programs at the South View country school also benefitted from her love of music. Doris had a huge green thumb, her abundant and flourishing garden was shared by all! She canned and shared the farm bounty she grew and labored over with the local neighbors and business owners in Wolf Point. She sold produce from her garden, eggs, milk & cream from the dairy and chicken. With busy hands and an open heart, Doris was always giving and doing for others.
Doris lost her first husband Paul on August 2, 1981. Soon there after she married Walter Schillinger on November 23, 1984. The time she spent with Walter was short and sweet. Walter enjoyed dancing and with Doris’s musical background she plugged right in and followed him every step of the way! Weekends were spent traveling around to surrounding towns and attending various folk dancing events. Doris was a home-body and did not travel much, but Walter managed to get her off the farm to see some of the world. She went to the Worlds Fair in Vancouver Canada in 1986 and took a cruise to the Panama Canal in 1988. Doris lost her dancing partner, Walter on November 22, 1988.
In 1990 Doris retired and moved to Reno, Nevada to be closer to her daughters and live a more relaxed lifestyle. Even though she retired, she still took with her that busy lifestyle and that energetic spirit. She traded one area for another and continued her gardening, baking, music talents and nurturing of animals. She had a Dachshund name “Shotsie” and a very unusual adopted Cockatiel named “Daisy.” Her new neighbors in Reno soon became some of her best friends. They too enjoyed the baking and cooking abilities Doris so expertly mastered and enjoyed doing. Doris’s unconditional love and selflessness showed in everything she did and it became her way of life. One of her favorite saying was, “You don’t have to do that on my account.” She never minded the task at hand, especially when it came to raising her nine children and accommodating all the stray drop in’s that seemed to migrate toward her kitchen on a daily basis. To her it was “the more the merrier.”
As the years waned on Doris felt the frustrations of old age. Her nimble fingers and hands gave way too many years of use and the pains of arthritis set in. For Doris this was probably one of the worst things to happen. She was such a handy person, and so enjoyed and loved being able to do all that she did and to be useful.
Doris has taught us the relaxation and calmness of mind when you put in a hard day of work and the proud feelings we get when we stand back and look at our accomplishments. She is a true testament to what one can do when given a task. Her tasks were many and not always easy and she did them with a strong back and a willing heart. She was a woman and mother we all wish we could be. A close family friend would always say, “Doris is the kind of mother I want to be for my children.” Doris was easy to be around, the peacefulness she portrayed was inviting and brought on long conversations. She was a best friend. We were very fortunate to have such a strong guiding light for us all to follow!
She is preceded in death by her first husband, Paul Leonard Huber, her son, Albert Leonard Huber, her second husband, Walter Schillinger, and her brothers; Alfonse & Joe Hemesath.
Doris is survived by her eight children, Paulette (Allan) Flikkema, Jean (Carl) Vander Molen, Mary Ann (Rick) Welcome, Robert (Verda) Huber, Loretta (Rick) Casazza, Guy (Karen) Huber, Rose (Max) Javadi, Mike (Gina) Huber and 17 grandchildren, Marie, Rachel, Dori, Scott, Andrew, Brandon, Kalynn, Kristopher, Anthony, Matthew, Nathan, Nicole, Lisa, Joshua, Shyon, Ryan, Gavin and seven great-grandchildren.
A viewing is scheduled for Thursday evening, May 29 th from 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. at the Clayton Stevenson Memorial Chapel in Wolf Point. Services will be held on Friday, May 30 th at 10:00 a.m. at Clayton Stevenson Memorial Chapel, on 102 Custer Street, Wolf Point, MT 59201. Interment will follow at Greenwood Cemetery in Wolf Point. Condolences for the family may be left at www.claytonstevensonchapel.com . Clayton Stevenson Memorial Chapel in Wolf Point has been entrusted with arrangements.