Marie McCann

Our beloved mother Rose Marie McCann, 75, went home to her Lord and Savior, passing away peacefully at the Beehive Homes assisted living facility in Helena, MT following a brief period of hospice care on November 22, 2022.

Marie (as she was known to most) was born on March 1, 1947 in Havre, MT. She was the only daughter of Lynn and Helen Deppmeier. Marie had three brothers, Melvin, Alvin, and Bernard. Her parents, and brothers Melvin and Alvin, predeceased her.

Marie grew up the in the family home in Fresno, MT just west of Havre. She attended 1st and 2nd grade in Kremlin and completed her schooling in Havre, graduating from Havre High School in 1965.  She met the love of her life, Steve McCann, in Havre and they were joined in a marriage that would span more than 57 years on June 13, 1965.  Marie would complete her nursing training and received her degree from Northern Montana College in 1966. Since Steve was a “farm boy”, we are sure it was his stunning good looks that caught Marie’s eye since farm boys aren’t rich!

After her husband Steve completed his college education and became a school science teacher, Marie embarked on series of adventures that would take them both to stops in Inverness, Eureka, and Roundup, MT with a bit of side trip to Moscow, ID in between while Steve pursued a Master’s Degree with Marie providing loving support the whole way.

During their time in Roundup, the biggest life challenge yet came when they made the most loving choice anyone could make by adopting a son (Patrick) in 1971 and a daughter (Rachelle) in 1974.  These decisions surely “enhanced” their life together in a way that can only come with having two small children in the house. During this time, Marie was a stay-at-home mom while Steve taught school during the day and worked in the oil fields of Musselshell County for swing shift to make ends meet.  Marie provided a loving and caring home to her two young children throughout her entire life.

In 1975, another adventure came when the family moved to Helena. Steve and Marie bought a house on Peosta Avenue and commenced the next phase of their life while raising the “kids” since that included not just Patrick and Rachelle, but also many of their friends from throughout the neighborhood. Marie was a mom to all who entered her house and many snacks and meals were had around her kitchen table by her children and their friends. If you ask our friends, who are all adults now, they will tell you that they considered Marie to be a second mom and always felt welcome in her home. It will always be remembered that mom said “I love you” through her gift of always being there. She never once missed a Christmas performance, a recital, dance, or a scout court of honor for her kids and grandkids until the end.

During her time in Helena, Marie worked at various occupations including janitorial work for the State of Montana at the Mitchell Building and also in the nursing field. Mom was most proud of her years as an in-home care nurse, which she did for many years, assisting others to help them stay in their homes as long as possible. Steve’s job with ASARCO eventually had him traveling for work for extended periods of time, so Marie took on the duties of the household on a full-time basis during these periods while providing a loving home to her children.  As her children, we are sure there were many “moments” that gave her unnecessary stress during these times, since we were occasionally told “you wait until your father gets home!”

Marie enjoyed hobbies throughout her time in Helena that included ceramics, sewing, needlepoint, cross stitch, and of course collecting.  The collecting hobby would continue for the rest of mom’s life and included collections of Fiesta ware, Aladdin kerosene lamps, Hummel figurines, collectable teddy bears, coins, and too many others to list.  Also, Marie and Steve had a side business restoring antique furniture with clients that included Betty Babcock, the widow of the former Governor of Montana! Of course, they also restored many, many pieces of antique furniture for themselves which remain in the family to this day. In addition to all of this, mom also enjoyed camping, being in the outdoors, and time spent with her family most of all.

Marie moved to western North Carolina in 1998 when Steve got a job there. While she enjoyed her time in North Carolina (church, antique shops and flea markets!) it never was quite the same as home in Montana. Dad was able to retire in 2005 and they moved back to Montana, purchasing a home and property in the north end of the Boulder Valley in Jefferson County. Mom was finally back home and near her children, their spouses, and her grandchildren.  The property includes a small pond where the grandkids fish and her children camp and relax throughout the spring, summer ,and fall. Mom loved spending time with her family at the pond and was able to spend many days with family there in the last summer of her life.

Marie always maintained a deep spiritual connection with the Lord through her faith and this faith sustained her to the end and beyond. She will be deeply missed by those left behind as she starts her next adventure. Her mortal tasks on Earth are complete and she has been called home to be with her Savior.

She is survived by her husband Steve, her brother Bernard (Celeste) Deppmeier, son Patrick (Sandra) McCann, daughter Rachelle McCann (Christopher) Cole, grandchildren Kendra (John) Borawski, Tyler (Leslie) Imhoff, Levi Cole, Kelee Cole and many informally adopted sons and daughters.

Marie was a very complex lady, gracious, and devoted to her family all at the same time. Yet she often had a well-timed wise, witty one-liner, making all around her laugh. For her gravestone inscription she instructed that it simply read “Daughter, Sister, Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Nurse”. That is about as perfect as it could be because it is all true and they were the values she held most deeply.

Cremation has taken place and a memorial service for Marie will be held in the Spring of 2023 at the family pond that she loved.

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