Sandra L. Zeiler passed away October 9, 2022, of pancreatic cancer. She was born to Harold and Edna (Kayrasvopio) Birkeland July 28, 1946, in Vancouver, Washington. That same year, the family moved to a farm in the Black Hills of South Dakota where she developed her intense love of mountains. When she was eight years old, the family moved to Billings, Montana, and she graduated from Billings West High School in 1964. On August 21, 1965, she married Denny Zeiler in Billings, and they moved in quick succession to Great Falls, Missoula, and then Helena. Sandy graduated in 1968 with a teaching degree from the College of Great Falls. When she and Denny moved to Helena she began teaching at Helena Junior High School in 1970, where she had the good fortune to be assigned a room next door to lifelong friend Don Johnson. Sandy was an English teacher and then librarian at Helena Junior High/Helena Middle School. In 1974, she teamed up with friend Ken Price and the student council to create the Lazy Green Park out of the dusty vacant lot across from Helena Junior High. She organized fundraisers, wrote grants, and coordinated student and community volunteers for planting days. In 1993, she teamed up with friend Jim Schultz to create a green fence of native species of shrubs and bushes. Though she insisted that it was not her park, it would not be there in its present form had it not been for her tenacious commitment. She admired HJH/HMS students' achievements. Son Kurt was born in 1976, and she and Denny enjoyed many years of gymnastics meets through his high school graduation. Sandy completed her Master's degree in education from Western Montana College in 1989. She retired in 1999, and she and Denny had marvelous cruises to Alaska, the Mediterranean, and around the tip of South America. They enjoyed a trip to Scandinavia and the Alps with friends Jack and Mary Dykstra. Sandy and Denny spent five Februaries out of the cold in Loreto, Baja, Mexico, with friends Carol and Greg Paulson. They loved their summers at the family cabin in the Beartooth Mountains near Red Lodge. She hiked for several years with the Red Lodge Hiking Club and enjoyed getting into the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness Area with its spectacular displays of magenta prairie fire. She loved contemporary art, sculpture and art glass, hence trips to Santa Fe and Taos. She appreciated fine writing and enjoyed good mysteries, the New Yorker, and cogent letters to the editor. She relied on MSNBC for political clarification. What she missed most during the pandemic was having friends over for brunches and dinners. She was a decent seamstress but a self-described "rotten gardener," and she planned her routes around Helena and Red Lodge to appreciate the flower displays of proficient gardeners.

Sandy was preceded in death by her parents Harold and Edna, sister-in-law Betty Carr and husband Russ, Lewis Noble, Col. David R. Hughes, close friends Imogene Hansen and Jean Glasscock, and four finicky cats. Survivors include her beloved husband, Denny, and beloved son, Kurt (both of Helena), her dear sister Jane Noble (her political soulmate to boot), and sister Lynn Hughes (both of California). Survivors also include her niece Sydney Herwer-Baca (Elena Baca and son, Joseph Baca); nephew Stephen Hughes and son David Michael (all of California), niece Debra (Dale) Benson and their sons Brett and Andy of Illinois, nephew Tim (Orlando) Carr of Florida, and many beloved cousins. Sandy is also survived by friends Julia Saylor (whom she met in 3rd grade), Ethel Dickman, Ann Ripley, Bev & Gene Allen, Bev Gibson, Jane Slattery, Bonnie Bowler, John Andrew, Shileen Dupre, Dale & Graciela Graff, and Kent & Kathy Kleinkopf. She is grateful for her multitude of friends, who are too numerous to mention here but whom Sandy trusts know her appreciation of their friendships. It was an honor to know you all.

The family wishes to extend their thanks to Dr. Sara O'Connell, Dr. Elizabeth Bigger, the cardio rehab staff, and all other St. Peter's Hospital staff who had a hand in her care. Also thanks to Lisa's In-Home Senior Assistance and Enhabit Hospice for her final care. Memorial donations may be made to Helena Food Share, Lewis and Clark Humane Society, Angel Fund, and Helena YWCA.  A celebration of life will be held on June 15, 2023 from 2 PM to 4 PM at Simple Cremation Montana, located at 648 N Jackson St, Helena, MT. A private memorial will also be held at the cabin near Red Lodge with family, friends, and the wonderful cabin community.