Lenore McKelvery Puhek
Obituary
In Memory Of
Lenore L. Puhek, age 86, of Helena
April 6, 1938 – December 28, 2024
Lenore Louise McKelvey Puhek passed away on December 28th, 2024, at the age of 86. She was surrounded by family and caring members of the St. Peter’s Hospital staff.
Lenore is the fourth child of Thomas Anthony and Nora Bee Frey McKelvey. She was born April 6, 1938, in her hometown of Helena, Montana. She attended Saint Helena grade school and Cathedral High school graduating in the class of 1956. While there she wrote a daily bulletin and edited the school newspaper.
After high school she worked for a time at the Mountain Bell “Ma Bell” telephone company in Helena. She then moved to Billings, MT, where she met Steve Puhek, a Red Lodge, Montana native. They were married on April 26th, 1962, in the Cathedral of Saint Helena, Helena, Montana.
Their son, Joseph James (Joey), was born in Billings on December 31, 1963. Joey needed medical care and was admitted to the Shriner’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah. They resided in Salt Lake City for five years, before returning to Helena. Joey passed away on May 11, 1981. Lenore and Steve were married until his death in 2002.
After returning to Helena, Lenore resumed her education and received a B.A. in English/ Writing from Carroll College, Helena, MT. Lenore worked in the Carroll College Learning Center helping foreign students with their English studies. One of those, from Kathmandu, Nepal, remained friends for years. She was, as she put it, an OTA (Older than Average Student). She started a club to support and encourage older classmates returning to education. She said that two people came to the first meeting, but they promised to bring two more and they eventually had to find a larger room to gather. While there she was awarded the A.B. “Bud” Guthrie, Jr. writing scholarship. She became friends with Guthrie, and she said he gave her great advice on writing.
Lenore’s principal occupation was that of homemaker, but she continued to enjoy lifelong learning in the arts including creative writing, painting, stained-glass, and photography. She attended the “John C. Campbell Folk School” located in Brasstown, North Carolina at least five times. Some of the classes she attended include jewelry and silver work, mountain dulcimer building, a woodworking class, glass fusing and slumping, and basketry.
Lenore loved to travel. For some of the trips she was joined by her sister Ellen and her Mother Nora Bee. These trips took them to Alaska, Ireland, Washington D.C., and around the United States. On an extensive bus tour of Europe, she visited the Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland, Lichtenstein.
Every two years Lenore attended writing conferences in other parts of the United States. She met Ivan Doig, Erma Bombeck, Maria Von Trappe, Richard Wheeler, Norma Ashby, and many other authors at these conferences. It was at one of them that she was challenged to “write a real story and become a real author”. That became the incentive for her first book, “The Rivers Edge”. Since then, she has authored and published seven books.
A large part of her life was the affiliations and friendships in writer’s organizations. She was a member of the Montana Christian Writers’ Fellowship. That group disbanded and Lenore started “Writers of the Big Sky”. That group met weekly to support and critique one another’s work.
She was a member of the Western Writers of America, Montana Historical Society, and the State of Montana Cowboy and Western Heritage Center. She often gave talks in historical dress about her books and Montana history.
Lenore wrote numerous nominations and biographies for Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame inductees. In 2024, Lenore was thrilled to be inducted into the Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame herself.
For years she attended the Cathedral of St. Helena. She worked on the cleaning of the stained-glass windows in the Cathedral, with her sister Ellen Murphy. She also gave tours of the Cathedral. She later became acquainted with staff and friends at St Cyril and Methodius in East Helena and began attending mass there.
Lenore is preceded in death by her Grandparents, Parents, son Joey, husband Steve, brother James McKelvey, sister Ellen Murphy, brothers-in-law Earl Murphy and Gary Dietzen, nephew Terry Murphy, and numerous cousins in the McKelvey, Nangle, Dietzen, and Murphy families.
Lenore is survived by her sister Sheila Dietzen of Yakima, WA, her brother Patrick McKelvey and his wife Judy of Helena, MT, and her cousin Billie Jo (Enright) Meglen, also of Helena.
She has numerous nieces, nephews, and extended family.
In lieu of flowers those who wish to donate in her name to the organization of their choice, or to the Nora Bee McKelvey scholarship fund at Carroll College, 1601 N Benton Ave, Helena, MT 59625. Donations to the scholarship fund may be made online at www.carroll.edu/give.
The funeral service for Lenore will be held at the SS Cyril and Methodius Catholic Church in East Helena, MT at 12:00 P.M. on Wednesday, January 15th. A luncheon will follow the service in the lower level of the church. Interment will follow the luncheon at Resurrection Cemetery in Helena. Pallbearers include Conn McKelvey, Doug Manning, Chris Kiser, Mike Murphy, Todd Dietzen, and Sean Manning. Honorary pallbearers are Randy Murphy and Brady Potter.
