Thelma Tooke

Funeral service for Thelma Tooke, 97, of Ekalaka, MT, will be 11:00 a. m. , Tuesday, May 26, 2015 at Stevenson Funeral Home, Ekalaka with Pastor Steve DeFord officiating. Burial will follow in Beaver Lodge Cemetery. Visitation for Thelma will be one hour prior to the service at Stevenson Funeral Home in Ekalaka. Thelma passed away May 19, 2015, at Dahl Memorial Healthcare in Ekalaka. Thelma Tooke was born August 3, 1917, to Hans and Martha (Lindberg) Stenseth in the family home in the Pershing community, the youngest of seven children. She attended the Pershing Country School and graduated from the eighth grade. She then worked as a waitress in Ekalaka. During her younger years, horses and wagons or buggies were used. She lived through the depression, hard winters, and dry summers. On July 9, 1936, Thelma married Chandler (Feek) Tooke. They lived and ranched in the Beaver Flats community. Four children were born to them: Ernest, Louise, Sharon, and Ken. During the winter months Thelma and her children lived in Ekalaka so the kids could attend school. On December 7, 1968, Feek passed away of a heart attack at the National Finals Rodeo in Oklahoma City, OK. After Feek’s death Thelma decided to live in Ekalaka. She worked as a nurse’s aide at Dahl Memorial for a few years for something to do. She also babysat for different families. Thelma traveled in her later years to Germany and several different states, including Hawaii. She was well known around town for her intense dislike of weeds, especially dandelions, which led to a dandelion theme for her 95th birthday. On December 31, 2013, Thelma entered Dahl Memorial Nursing Home. She thoroughly enjoyed the different churches having Sunday services and the music provided by Phil Cook, Robert Boggs, and Delbert Justice. Thelma is survived by her two sons, Ernest (Peggy) Tooke of Ekalaka and Ken (Gail) Tooke of Cheyenne, WY, and her two daughters, Louise (Dell) Dague of Ekalaka and Sharon (Bill) Swartz of Olathe, CO; seven grandchildren, fifteen great-grandchildren; eleven great-great grandchildren and several nieces and nephews. Thelma was preceded in death by her husband, Feek; grandson, Chandler Tooke; great-great grandson, Peyton Tooke Norwood; five brothers, Ole, George, Henry, Art and Ernest Stenseth, and one sister, Evelyn Martens.


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Burial Date: May 26, 2015
Church Stevenson Funeral Home

Funeral Services: Tuesday: Stevenson Funeral Home, Ekalaka, MT