Our loving mother, Marie Lou, died at the Billings Clinic on January 7, of injuries sustained from an accident on the farm south of Brockton. She was born Marie Louise on September 18, 1940 to Louis and Catherine Poutcou in Mendive, France in the Basque region of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques. She married Jean Pierre Bidegaray on April 1, 1964 and started her new life as a farmwife, mother and partner with her husband and later with her sons. Mom & Dad started farming & ranching in the Yellowstone Valley in Sidney and then moved to the Charlie Creek area south of Brockton farming & ranching along the Missouri River. For the next 54 years, Mom raised 6 children, many a bum calf, and harvested and shared the bounties of her orchards, gardens and her chickens! She was preceded in death by her husband of 48 years, Jean Pierre in 2012, siblings in France (Jeanne, Jean, Jean Charles, Jean Louis) and her parents Louis and Catherine. She is survived by her children and (grandchildren): Josy & Mike McLean (Jayse) in Great Falls; Jeanine Granada (Dominica, Renée, Gabriel) south of Brockton, Patrick & Lanette Bidegaray (Colton, Landon, Alexi) in Culbertson; Gabriele & Geremy Powell (Nora, Gage) in Mount Pleasant, SC; Claude & Tammi Bidegaray (Brice), south of Brockton; Remi Bidegaray, south of Brockton. She is survived also by her brothers Jean Pierre, Joseph, and Jean Baptiste, and dear youngest sister Gracie in France.
Her children and their families wish to thank the first responders and doctors from Poplar Community Hospital and the trauma surgeons and nurses at Billings Clinic for their care and support of Mom in her last days. As per her wishes, Mom has been cremated and Stevenson-Clayton Memorial in Wolf Point is handling funeral arrangements. A funeral mass will be held later this summer at St. Bernard’s in Charlie Creek. In lieu of flowers, please donate to a charity close to your heart wherever you call home. As Mom loved her life where she was planted, may your gifts be like seeds to grow a vibrant, supportive community wherever they are planted.
Mom, rest in Peace in the Loving Arms of Jesus.