Marie Evelyn DeLaitsch Lockhart

Marie Evelyn DeLaitsch Lockhart was born Oct. 28, 1927 near Colfax, Wisc., to George and Evelyn DeLaitsch. She was the fourth of six children. Marie grew up on a dairy farm and, as a young girl, attended a one-room schoolhouse.

After graduating high school she attended St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., where she earned a bachelor’s degree in teaching with a minor in biology. Following college she began work as a high school science teacher.

Seeking adventure, Marie would teach in a community for a year and then move on. In this way she “taught her way West” to Great Falls, where she met Harold Best Lockhart whom she married in 1956. They had three boys ­— Andy, Doug and Pete — while living in Great Falls.

In 1967, the family moved to Whitefish. Marie was a substitute teacher in the Whitefish school system while raising her three boys. She later became a Realtor, a library volunteer, and instructor for Literacy Volunteers of America.

Marie had a lifelong love of travel, both local and global. She took many trips with her husband and family, and often with a group of close girlfriends. For over 20 years they visited places like China, Japan, Brazil, Israel, Portugal, Ireland, Germany, England, Scandinavia, Mexico, Fiji, and New Zealand.

Marie liked animals, from dogs and cats to the wildlife that paraded past her homes in Montana and Arizona. She enjoyed seeing bears, but did not appreciate them on her porch or at the base of a tree she’d climbed. She liked tidal pools and bird watching.

Marie was the best fisherman in the Lockhart family. On fishing trips around Montana, she would loudly count her rapidly increasing catch, so that her family would know how many fish she’d caught.

Marie had a keen mind, a great sense of humor — fun-loving and playful, and an irrepressible curiosity. She had a good appetite and was an adventurous eater. She stayed on top of current events and the interests and activities of those she knew. Marie was direct and straightforward. On the rare occasion when she made a mistake, she would be the first to identify the error with a self-deprecating “Oh, Marie, you dumbass!”

Besides being a great mother, she is remembered as a great partner to Harold. Their marriage was one of her proudest accomplishments. Her sons remember her and their father laughing at night before bed as they discussed the day’s events.

After Harold’s death in 2014, Marie moved to Hillsboro, Ore., to continue her adventure and engage in some last-minute remedial child rearing.

True to her lifelong pursuit of new experiences, Marie recently observed, “I want to learn to fight with a knife.” To the relief of her family this wish was never fulfilled.

She is survived by her sons, Andy Lockhart of Vancouver, Wash., Doug Lockhart of San Diego, and Pete Lockhart of Hillsboro, Ore.; her daughters-in-law, Carol Lockhart of San Diego, and Beth Harrington of Vancouver, Wash.; her grandchildren, Nick and Catey Lockhart; and her siblings, Bud DeLaitsch and Margie Riste.

A memorial service will be held in Whitefish later this spring.

In lieu of flowers, go somewhere new or do something you’ve never done before.