Obituaries

Hugh Wilber was born to Carl and Gertrude (House) Wilber on April 8, 1929 in Gordon. They moved to Valentine when he was a year old. Hugh attended school in Valentine where he was a player on the 1945 undefeated, unscored upon football team. He graduated in 1947 and attended the University of Nebraska for one year.

Merle Charles Shelbourn, 75, passed away on November 12, 2021 at his home in Valentine. Merle was born November 6, 1946 in Valentine to Donald and Ida Rose (Hagedorn) Shelbourn.

Delbert Dean Fullerton, 90, of Gothenburg, died November 4, 2021 at Hilltop Estates. Delbert Dean Fullerton was born May 23, 1931, the third of four boys, in Cody to Ralph Earl and Anna Marie (Kleinemier) Fullerton.

Mark Joseph Mulligan was unexpectedly called to his heavenly home on November 5, 2021, at the age of 56. He was with his companion Gus.

Edith Mae (Shelbourn) McCormick, was born March 9 1926 in Valentine and passed away October 19, 2021 at Community Pride Care Center in Battle Creek. Edith was the fourth of five children born to Walter and Mable (Pont) Shelbourn. Edith attended Kewanee grade school near her home and graduated from Valentine High School in 1943. For three years after that, she did secretarial work for various individuals and businesses around town. After World War II was over and soldiers returned, she met and later married Howard McCormick, on April 6, 1947. Prior to that, although living only 12 miles apart, did not really know each other! They moved to the Mc- Cormick ranch northeast of Sparks, where they resided until Howard’s failing health in 2002 necessitated them moving to Valentine. Electricity did not come to rural Keya Paha county until the early 1950’s, so you cooked on a wood burning stove, carried in water from an outside pumpjack to heat on the stove so you could wash cloths and bathe. They were fortunate to have a wind charger which did provide some electricity when the wind blew but otherwise kerosene lanterns were used to light the house after dark. They both loved dancing and while “courting”, and even after marriage, would attend dances at Hidden Paradise in Long Pine on Friday night and then the Cosmo Club in Valentine on Saturday. Edith was a great cook and loved to raise a garden. Of course, along with that went picking off potato bugs, tomato worms, and carrying in water and cow manure. In the fall, canning occupied much of her day as produce from the garden ripened. She raised cherry, apple and mulberry trees, wild plum, chokecherry, sand cherry, and raspberry bushes, rhubarb and pumpkins; not to mention store bought lemons, bananas, and pecans all from which she’d used to make bread, pie, jelly, and jam. In the past few years she passed her recipes on to her grandkids. Edith always got a couple hundred chickens in the spring which provided meat and eggs; so along with their own beef and pork didn’t require them to go to town very often.

Josephine Alice Klein died September 20, 2021 in the Avera Rosebud Country Care Center, Jo, or Gramma Jo as she was called by many, was from the Hidden Timber Area, SD, but with a Valentine address. Jo was born to Florence (MacDonald) and Herbert Gregg on February 18,1932 in room C of the Carter Hotel being run by her grandparents.

Warren "Keith" Stotts was born May 8, 1959, to Warren W and Vi Stotts in Martin SD. He was the third of five children. They lived in Cody during his childhood years where he worked on the family ranch and attended Cody-Kilgore Unified Schools. They later moved to Valentine where Keith attended and graduated from Valentine Rural High School. He attended school for diesel mechanic for one year.

Betty May Elliott came into this world in Yuma, CO, with her identical twin sister, Bess, on February 16, 1922. Betty would narrate the story that she had heard from her mother, Ethel Elliott, that people from all over Yuma would come to see the identical twins. She loved being a twin. Betty quietly departed from this world September 3, 2021 at the Elwood Care Center.

A Celebration of Life service for Carol McBride will be held at 11:00 a.m. Saturday October 23, 2021 at the Stuart Community Church in Stuart.