Mary Jean Chase

GLENDIVE, MONTANA: Mary "Jean" Chase, age 69, passed away on Tuesday, June 29, 2010 at the Glendive Medical Center Extended Care after a short battle with cancer. Visitation will be held from 3:00 P.M. until 5:00 P.M. and 6:00 P.M. until 8:00 P.M. on Friday, July 2, 2010 at the Silvernale-Silha Funeral Home in Glendive. A Life Tribute Service will be held at 10:00 A.M. on Saturday, July 3, 2010 in the Chapel of the Silvernale-Silha Funeral Home in Glendive with Celebrant Sandy Silha officiating. Private family interment will be held at a later date in the Dawson County Cemetery in Glendive. Silvernale-Silha Funeral Home of Glendive has been entrusted with the arrangements. Jean was born on September 24, 1940 in Sioux City, Iowa the daughter of Cecil Krebs "Cy" and Rita Geneva (Sullivan) Bland. She was raised and educated in Iowa graduating from Bishop Heelan High School in Sioux City with the class of 1958. After graduation Jean worked as a Dental Assistant, until she was united in marriage to Leo Chase on September 7, 1963, in Sioux City. After their marriage the couple moved to Lincoln, Nebraska, which became their first home, while Leo worked for the railroad. The railroad kept them on the move to Missouri, Iowa and Washington before moving to Glendive in 1988. They have made their home there since. Jean was a devoted and excellent wife, mother and grandmother, her family was everything to her. She enjoyed gardening and feeding the local wildlife including several families of squirrels and raccoons. She loved going to garage sales and had the "gift of gab". Jean enjoyed the holidays, she especially loved decorating for every holiday with her grandchildren. She was proceeded in death by her parents and her sisters Lynn and Kathleen. Survivors included her husband, Leo of Glendive; her daughter, Mary Lynn Chase (Brad Dickhaut) of Glendive; her sons, Matthew Wade (Michelene) Chase of Ankeny, Iowa and Mark Edward Chase of Mount Lake Terrace, Washington; her sister, Margaret Perkins of Deckerd, Tennessee; her seven grandchildren, Kim, Ashley, Kayla, Christopher, Ryleigh, Kylee and Danielle and her great grandchild Carter; numerous nieces and nephews. Remembrances and condolences may be shared with the family at: www.silvernale-silhafuneralhome.com Mary Â“JeanÂ” Chase Life Tribute Service Chapel of the Silvernale-Silha Funeral Home Glendive, Montana July 3, 2010 Welcome: Master of Ceremonies Opening Prayer: Brother Aelred Introduction of speaker and video tribute: Celebrant Speaker: Mary Chase, daughter Video Tribute Eulogy: Celebrant Mary Jean Chase. Â“Your heart has brought great joy to many. Those hearts can never forget you.Â” (Flavia Weeden) As we remember Jean, we honor and pay tribute to a unique woman whose loving and giving to those around her were the essence of her feisty, and straightforward personality. The second of four girls in her family, Jean was characterized as a Â“DaddyÂ’s girlÂ” as she enjoyed a very close relationship with her father. He was very forgiving of JeanÂ’s feisty personality, while that same spunkiness caused Jean to be in trouble with her strict mother on many occasions. Jean grew up and received her education in Sioux City, Iowa. The following comments were written on JeanÂ’s kindergarten report card by her teacher for the first semester: Â“Mary Jean has made a satisfactory adjustment to group and school situations. She is rather noisy at times and is not always willing to accept her share of responsibility. Mary Jean is interested and enters into all activities. She Â…needs to develop more independence in her work.Â” Well, Mary Jean never did get over being noisy, as she always had the Â“gift of gabÂ” as her family puts it. As far as responsibility and independence, she certainly developed that. After her year in kindergarten in the public school system, Mary Jean received her education in Catholic schools. It was in the Catholic schools that Mary Jean came to be called Jean. Mary is a popular Catholic name, and to avoid confusion, the nuns began to call her by just her middle name, Jean. You may wonder how this feisty young girl made out with those stereotypical stern nuns, in their intimidating black habit, with a ruler clutched firmly in hand. For the most part, Jean made out just fine. One story Jean did tell her family occurred when she was an eighth grader. Jean was reading or speaking aloud in class and was not pronounciating to the satisfaction of her teacher. The nun began moving in JeanÂ’s direction with the dreaded ruler, but before the nun could get to JeanÂ’s desk, Jean jumped up informing the nun that she wasnÂ’t going to take it, and then Jean proceeded to run out of the room and the school. As Jean told it, several eighth grade boys were sent to run her down and bring her back. Jean has always let those around her know just where she stood on issues. That outspoken honesty, has always been appreciated by those who knew Jean, because Jean sincerely cared about the people around her and she never wronged anyone, but was a friend to all, especially and including her family. JeanÂ’s familyÂ…they meant everything to Jean. Jean and Leo met at a bowling alley through a mutual friend. Leo is quite sure that is the only time Jean bowled. She would go watch, but she wasnÂ’t interested in doing it herself. After Jean and Leo married, LeoÂ’s job with the railroad moved them around and they lived in several states during their 46+ years of marriage. Leo says that often when they moved, he would go ahead, with Jean and the family following a month or two behind him. When Jean would get there and they would drive down the street and people would wave, or they would go places and people would greet them, Jean would say, Â“Who was that?Â” About six months after Jean arrived, when people would greet them or wave, it would be Leo who would be asking, Â“Who was that?Â” Jean was so outgoing, so interested in people, that with her Â“gift of gabÂ” she would soon knew everyone. During this time, Jean and Leo raised a family of two sons, Matt and Mark, and a daughter, Mary. Jean was a stay at home mom and homemaker, and because of the shifts Leo sometimes worked, during the week Jean was often the only parent the children saw. But her children didnÂ’t mind. Jean was a great mom. She was always there for them. She was their biggest and most vocal supporter, a fan at all the boysÂ’ sporting events; she was there for MaryÂ’s softball and band concerts, waving and yelling out greetings to the young flute player she was so proud of. Jean was there for the kids every day after school; she was there for school things, she was a Â“momÂ” to her childrenÂ’s friends, she was a good listener; she was their defender against the world; they just knew they could always count on her. Throughout LeoÂ’s life, throughout the lives of her children, until the day she died, Jean was their best friend. There was nothing she would not do for them. Son Mark covered it quite well when he stated that they never felt unloved. As adults, her children and Jean exchanged many long phone calls. Jean loved to talk on the phone. And Jean always ended the conversation with Â“Remember, we love you.Â” Son Matt recalls the yearly two week vacations to Iowa and Colorado to visit relatives, that always included a side trip to an amusement park, museum or some other fun place. Most memorable, though, was riding with Jean. She loved to rant and rave about all the other terrible drivers on the road. Matt claims that Jean was directionally challenged, but knew the location of every thrift store wherever they went. One traumatic experience Matt suffered at the hands of his mother was the one time she gave him a haircut. She kept trying to even it up until all he had left was a little peak at the front. She even got a piece of his eyebrow. Jean wasnÂ’t much of a disciplinarian, and Mark heard her say many times, Â“wait Â‘til your dad gets home.Â” Most often things didnÂ’t get to Leo, but one time that sticks in MarkÂ’s mind was when he was using the living room furniture as trampolines, jumping from the couch to the chair to the ottoman. When Leo got home, Jean decided instead of telling Leo what Mark had done, she would show Leo. Jean broke a toe. Another famous Â“MarkÂ” incident was when he and a friend took MattÂ’s mo-ped for a ride. Jean had told them not to leave the neighborhood. Well, the boys headed down to the river, it was Steamboat Days. While Mark and his friend were there, a newspaper photographer asked if he could take their picture. Sure!! The next day, Jean asked Mark if he had taken the mo-ped down to the river. Â“Nooo!Â” Well, Jean asked, isnÂ’t that you on the front page of our newspaper? Daughter Mary was the baby of the family, and she and her mother had a very close and special relationship. Mary could always tell her mother anything, and she did. Jean was MaryÂ’s best friend, her confidant, her rock. They did many things and shared many experiences together. Jean and Mary both loved to shop, not necessarily buy, just spend hours shopping the stores. If Jean did buy anything, it would be for her kids, or the grandkids, or Leo, not herself. Jean always put herself last. It was because of Mary that Jean acquired a special family member, a dog, Cody. Jean was picking Mary up at a store. Someone was giving away kittens at the door of the store when Jean went in, so Jean got Mary and left by a different door, knowing Mary wouldnÂ’t want to pass up the kittens. The door they left out of had someone giving away puppies. Mary took one and named him Cody. But Jean ended up with Cody, and that dog was always with Jean, never more than a step or two away. Cody was devoted to Jean, and only tolerated the rest of the family. When the family expanded to include grandchildren, Jean was in her glory. There was nothing she would not do for them. And they all loved to spend time with grandma. Grandma didnÂ’t tell their secrets, she kept great snacks just for them, they played card games with her, a favorite being card golf. Favorite board games included checkers and Sorry. Jean also had a computer just to play games. She taught the grandkids the computer gambling games, and computer Â“spiderÂ” solitaire. Jean loved decorating for the holidays throughout the year, and she would let the grandkids help. They were in charge of all the window clings, and would also help set up grandmaÂ’s huge Christmas village on the pool table in the basement. Grandma took them shopping and to garage sales and to thrift stores. Granddaughter Ashley especially remembers when she and Grandma would be on the hunt for the latest beanie baby. The older granddaughters, Kayla and Ashley, werenÂ’t so much interested in playing games with grandma anymore, but still enjoyed shopping with Jean. Last summer, when they were all together in Washington, Kayla and Ashley had some memorable moments shopping with grandma. And whether it was Ashley long distance on the phone, or Kayla stopping in to visit, both granddaughters enjoyed just having a conversation, a bit of a gab session, with their grandma. Another shared experience Jean had with the grandkids was feeding the birds and squirrels. Jean even had a raccoon that would eat of her hand. Leo and grandson, Christopher, would build birdhouses, and Jean and granddaughter, Ryleigh, would paint them. Feeding the birds and animals was something Jean had always done, even with her children. An only grandson, Christopher, had a special bond with Jean. She backed him up on everything, even throwing up in the car; and when she became ill, Christopher helped take care of her, making sure she had her oxygen, helping her to the bathroom, staying with her. Special times for Christopher and Ryleigh were the sleepovers they had with grandma. A special bed would be made up. They would go to bed first, then call for grandma to come to bed with them. Time was always spent talking with grandma before falling to sleep, and she would let them chose what to talk about. Grandma did not just have Â“the gift of gabÂ”, she was a good listener. That gift of gab Jean had, much of what she talked about was about her love and pride for her family. But JeanÂ’s gift of gab was also a gift of caring. When Jean went to the grocery store, it would take hours for her to shop and she might leave with only one bag of groceries. It always amazed her daughter-in-law, Michelene, how Jean stopped and talked to everyone. Vance and Linda Vickers commented that Jean always had time to visit with you, always seemed happy to see you, and just made you feel important. She cared for people. She didnÂ’t beat around the bush, and she was a spitfire. JeanÂ’s conversations were always sprinkled with colorful language. Mary tells about a typical reaction her mother would have when something didnÂ’t go as planned. This particular time occurred at MaryÂ’s wedding. Mary was giving each of her parents a rose during the ceremony. When Jean received her rose from Mary, Jean hugged her daughter. The thorn on the rose got caught in MaryÂ’s veil. Jean loudly exclaimed Â“Oh, shÂ…!Â” and the wedding came to a brief halt as they untangled the veil. But that was Jean. Jean was frugal. She loved a good sale, a bargain, and she loved to dicker on the price. Because of this, garage sales were right up her alley. She also grew up with a mother who antiqued, so Jean had a great deal of knowledge about old treasures, and she loved to find them at thrift stores and garage sales. Jean herself, collected antique dolls. When it came to other things in life, if it was on sale, she might stock up on it whether she needed it or not. She was loyal to certain stores and to certain name brands and she religiously threw things out according to the expiration date. Brad Dickhaut laughs when he tells about buying items with the date they were made instead of the expiration date. Jean didnÂ’t realize the difference and as quick as Brad would buy it, Jean would throw it. Another thing Brad found amusing was that Jean would buy a bag of chips, and eat the big ones in the top half of the bag. When the chips started to be broken, Jean would throw the bag out. She would not eat the Â“crumbs.Â” Jean also had a sweet tooth, with her favorite cure being Hershey chocolate candy bars with almonds. Growing up in Sioux City, she grew up on Palmer candy. She loved Twin Bing candy bars, LaFama candy bars, and red licorice pipes. Whenever the family visited Iowa, Jean took an ice chest to fill with the Palmer candy she loved. Every day for lunch, Jean would have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and sour cream and onion potato chips. She hated vegetables, and might eat tomatoes if they were fresh from the garden. Which brings us to the farmersÂ’ market. When the farmersÂ’ market would begin each summer, Jean went every Friday. Her cohort in this adventure was Mary Jo Gehnert. No one is allowed to buy until the bell rings at ten, and then it gets, as Mary Jo puts it, Â“brutalÂ”. Jean and Mary Jo put together a battle plan. Mary Jo would stand at the cucumber table; Jean would cover the tomatoes. Later in the season when the corn, potatoes, and other produce showed up, they would enlist JeanÂ’s grandchildren, Christopher and Ryleigh, and put each of them at the appropriate vendor with money and instructions. After about twenty minutes, Jean, Mary Jo, and the kids would meet in the parking lot, and as the adrenaline subsided, they would divvy up the spoils. It was an excellent adventure they all looked forward to. Jean loved her home and was a meticulous housekeeper, there was a place for everything. She kept her yard filled with pots of many different kinds of flowers. In the house, she had arrangements of artificial flowers. Jean would have appreciated all the lovely flowers that are here to honor her today. Jean loved her coffee, strong and black. She enjoyed the slots, with Prairie Knights a favorite get-away. Jean spent her winnings on her children and grandchildren. Jean loved her cigarettes, and was always stashing cigarettes that she stockpiled from sales. Mary and Jean made many trips to Dickinson, North Dakota shopping and Jean always returned with cartons of cigarettes. When you cross the state line into Montana, there is a billboard sign reminding Montana residents to pay MontanaÂ’s tax on any cigarettes bought out of state. Jean would just smile and wave at the sign as they drove by, happy to have gotten the cigarettes at a good price. Jean was not a complicated woman. She had strong likes and dislikes. Jean was feisty and fun, and had a good sense of humor. She didnÂ’t like being the center of attention. She wouldnÂ’t impose on anyone or ask a favor, but she would never say no to or refuse to help anyone. She had a heart of gold. JeanÂ’s world was her family; she was LeoÂ’s soulmate, a wonderful mother and friend to her children, and a perfect grandmother. The love she and her family had for each other is huge, and strong, and was present every day of JeanÂ’s life. That was her greatest accomplishment. Mary Jean Chase was greatly loved and she will be greatly missed. Let us now listen to a song chosen for today by her family, Â“AveÂ’ MariaÂ”. Song: AveÂ’ Maria Good-bye: Celebrant When someone dies a hole is left in our hearts. When someone who was such a large part of our lives and hearts die, the hole seems bigger and harder to fill. Jean was a strong and feisty presence. Â“Because she lived, there is more love in the world than there would have been without her.Â” Touched though we are with sadness, as we consider JeanÂ’s life, we are filled with memories, happy and sad. That Jean has lived, what Jean has experienced can never be taken from her or from us. For this we are grateful. JeanÂ’s presence during her lifetime has been significant, and she certainly has left a special touch on the hearts of her family. Leo, Matt, Mark, Mary, and all of JeanÂ’s family, as your friends and community, we grieve with you and we grieve for you. There is no finer tribute to Jean than the number of friends who are here today to honor Jean with their presence. Thank you for being here for this important time. We should never assume a friend wants to mourn alone. JeanÂ’s family will need us in the coming weeks and months. When something reminds you of Jean, share it with them. Call, e-mail, send a note or stop in and visit. Let Leo and the rest of the family know what a significant impact Jean had on your life and that you will always remember her. Remember the firsts Â– the 1st anniversaries, the 1st birthdays, the 1st holidays, for at these times, JeanÂ’s absence will be felt with a fresh sense of loss. Be very present during these times and honor the memory of this wonderful woman. The author of the following words is anonymous but these words could have been JeanÂ’s: Â“When my time comes, I want to be remembered, Not in a way that makes hearts ache, But in a way that brings warmth and joy. I want to be remembered For the happy times we shared For the ways we showed our love for one another. I want to have the peace of knowing That the ones I love will be happy and well, That their hearts will be hopeful, And their lives filled with experiences That are rich and rewarding.Â” Please take a few moments now to spend time remembering Jean as we listen to the song, Â“Amazing Grace.Â” Song: Â“Amazing GraceÂ” Introduction of closing tribute You may have heard the phrase Â“Pennies from Heaven.Â” Today, JeanÂ’s family will have a special tribute to say good-bye to Jean, a special wife, mother, grandmother and friend. Whenever Jean would find a penny laying around, she would put it in a jar and save it. Each member of JeanÂ’s family has brought a penny today. The pennies have their year of birth on the them. After Brother AelredÂ’s closing prayer, those pennies will be placed on JeanÂ’s casket as a symbol of the loving thoughts that they want to send with Jean. As they go about life, whenever they find a penny in an unexpected place at an unexpected time, that penny will be a reminder that Jean is thinking of them and sending her love to them from heaven. The family invites you to also leave a penny with Jean for the place she holds in your hearts. If you donÂ’t have a penny, the family has provided the funeral director with pennies for you to use. Brother Aelred will close JeanÂ’s life tribute service with a prayer. Then as the funeral directors usher you out, please leave a penny with Jean to symbolize your thoughts and love for her. Closing prayer: Brother Aelred

Mary Jean Chase

September 24, 1940 - July 3, 2010

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Mary Jean Chase

September 24, 1940 - July 3, 2010

What We Do

Flowers & Gifts

Plan Ahead

About Us

Resources

Obituaries

Grief & Healing

Contact Information

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