June Ottolino

June Mavis Bilges Ottolino entered eternal life on May 25, 2021, at the age of 92, one month short of her 93rd birthday. June was born on June 25, 1928, in Fargo, North Dakota, and spent her childhood years in or near the western North Dakota farming community of New England. The oldest child of John and Ruby Bilges, June would soon be helping her parents raise her younger brothers and sisters which eventually would number nine in all. Like so many others in her generation, June and her parents and brothers and sisters faced the twin challenges of the Great Depression and World War II. She graduated from New England High School in 1946, attended the teachers college in Dickenson, North Dakota, and spent a year teaching at a one-room school near New England before leaving that pursuit for big city life in Billings, Montana. In Billings, she joined the office staff of Billings Gas Company, now Montana-Dakota Utilities Company, where she met her future husband, Albert Ottolino. They were married on August 26, 1950 and settled in Billings where they began a family with the births of son David in 1951 and daughter Karyn in 1955. At first a homemaker, June would return to the office workforce first as a seasonal employee of the Great Western Sugar Company and later as a full-time employee of Beverages of Billings, as the Coca Cola bottler was known at the time. A promotion for Albert in 1968 led to a move to Bridger, Montana where Albert assumed the role of district manager and June the role of office manager for the local operations of Montana-Dakota Utilities Company. They would continue in those roles until their retirements from the company in 1986. Albert and June remained in Bridger and were now able to indulge their mutual love of travel in their early retirement years. Health concerns would eventually lead them to move back to Billings, which they did in 2004. After several years in their townhome, Albert and June moved to the MorningStar senior living facility. After more than 65 years of marriage, Albert passed away at the beginning of 2016. June was an active member of Trinity Lutheran Church and St. Paul Lutheran Church. She held leadership positions in the women's auxiliaries at both the local and state levels and joined in the work to launch the fledgling Trinity Lutheran School. In Bridger, she held similar leadership roles locally and regionally in the Federation of Women's Clubs and assisted Albert in his leadership role at the Bridger Senior Center. Throughout her life, June showed a passion for learning and for books, perhaps best exemplified by her volunteer work at the local library in Bridger and with the county and regional library programs. Travel was still another passion, and she and Albert were proud of having visited all fifty states, much of Canada, and Mexico. She became a big fan of the Elder Hostel program (which evolved into today's Road Scholars program). June was preceded in death by her parents, sisters Verna, Bonnie, and Bonita, brothers Jerome, Roland, and Terry, and husband Albert. She is survived by her sister Linda, brothers Lauren and Roger, children David and Karyn, and numerous nieces and nephews. Cremation and interment have taken place. A memorial service will be held at Trinity Lutheran Church on June 10, 2021, at 11:00 a.m. Memorial contributions may be made to Trinity Lutheran Church and School, Billings; to St. Paul Lutheran Church, Bridger; to the Florence Crittenden Home, Helena; or to a charity of the donor's choosing.