Ladd Shorey

Ladd Strife Shorey, 97 years young, was a joyous Christmas gift to Gardner Percival and Marie Strife Shorey. Born on a dairy farm in Forsyth, MT, where all the cows had papers, he received no birth certificate proving an obstacle when he later applied for a passport. While a toddler he moved to Greybull, Wyoming, and then to Casper , where as a young boy he sold papers on the street corner for 2 cents profit each. Legend has it that he steered a squeaking steel wheeled wagon around the block endlessly, wearing out only one shoe and annoying neighbors. As a teenager, he served as an altar boy and sang in the Episcopalian Church choir. At Natrona County High, which was built with an indoor swimming pool during the depression, he participated in ROTC, track, and boxing. He performed in the school plays, played a horn in the band, and sang with a select group of young men called the Choraliers. At the insistence of two older sisters, he took typing and shorthand which enabled him to gain employment after graduation, first in the Casper National Bank and then as the private secretary to Lawrence M. Kiplinger at the Ohio Oil Company. On the tennis courts where he was a junior champion, he met a vivacious, stunning blonde named Lois Schreck. They married June 7, 1936, and were inseparable for 58 years until her death in 1994. They first moved to Mammoth, Wyoming, in Yellowstone Park, so Dad could work for the National Park Service. What great tales they told about people and wildlife in the Park during those early days: ballroom dances at the original Canyon Lodge, visits with the head buffalo keeper, exploded baked watermelons, deer and bears attempting to share Pattis baby bottles! Although over the draft age, Dad left Yellowstone Park to volunteer for Army service in WWII; he saw action in the Pacific, then was among the troops stationed in Japan at the end of the war. Upon his discharge he returned to Mammoth and transferred to Heart Mountain, WY, where his job was to help dismantle the Japanese Internment Camp. From there he transferred to the Bureau of Reclamation in Great Falls and finally to the Bureau of Indian Health in Billings, MT. In those early years, he took part time evening and weekend jobs so his daughters could have dancing and music lessons. He took early retirement in 1969 to help establish the Billings Federal Employees Credit Union and oversaw the growth of that credit union and the founding of two others. Federal employees still tell of their gratitude that Dad granted them credit when no one else in Billings would. Dad also had an income tax business that he later sold. He belonged to the American Legion, was a Mason, a lifetime Elks member and active as the president of the Elks Drum and Bugle Corps, proudly marching and playing his bugle in parades and national competitions. Dad and Mother hosted legendary parties around their foot-pedaled player piano in Great Falls and Billings. Hundreds of piano rolls with favorite tunes filled the hall closet. They later enjoyed square dancing at Rays barn for many years. They were enthusiastic community volunteers, active in NARFE, AARP and the senior advisory Board, Deaconess 65. They received the Friend of Deaconess Award in 1994. For many years, they taught safe driving classes for seniors55 ALIVEall over the state. Their proudest accomplishment was having state representative Cal Winslow sponsor a bill in the Montana Legislature that took effect Oct 1, 1987, called the Mature Defensive Driving Act providing an insurance discount for all seniors who completed their AARP driving course. Dad took his first European vacation at 81, gamely blowing an Alpine horn while in Switzerland. He was swift on his cane until his last day at the Bozeman Lodge where he loved everyone and they loved him. He remembered everything he read and was interested in any topic. He credited his longevity to “never smoking or drinking” and his Swiss heritage. He adored his grandchildren and great-grandson and was generous beyond measure. He never missed a concert or performance by his daughters or his grandchildren. He was gracious and courteous to the end; Mother called him “the last of the true gentlemen.” He was preceded in death by his dear wife of 58 years Lois and his sisters Madolin Cervantes and Lois Gronberg. He is survived by daughters Patricia Koch of Billings and Judith (Eivind) Forseth of Pray; grandchildren Kels (Colette) Koch of Nashville, CPT Eivind (Tara) Forseth of Ventura, CA, Larissa Forseth of Billings, great-grandson Tristan Forseth of Rancho Santa Margarita, CA, and niece Marva Allison of Powell, WY. Our gratitude to all the people who made Dads last months comfortable: Dr. Borgenicht, Melissa Wustner, the staffs at the Bozeman Lodge, First Choice Home Health, Bozeman Deaconess Hospital, Bozeman Health and Rehabilitation Center, Hospice of Southwest Montana and Home Instead Senior Care. Memorials: If desired, memorials may be made to Project Healing Waters or the Food Bank. Service: Dads service will be in the Chapel at Billings St. Stephens Episcopal Church, Wednesday, July 6, 2011, at 1:30 P M.