John J. Scott

John J. Scott, 86, of Great Falls, Montana, a beloved husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, left this life peacefully and entered paradise on March 1, 2014 surrounded by his family. “Don’t let your heart’s be troubled. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. I am going to prepare a place for you.” -John 14: 1-2 A rosary vigil will be held Friday, March 14, 2014 at 7:30pm at O’Connor Memorial Chapel located at 2425 8th Avenue North Great Falls, MT. Funeral mass will be celebrated Saturday, March 15, 2014 at 10 am at Corpus Christi Catholic Church located at 410 22nd Avenue North East, Great Falls, MT, with Father Ryan Erlenbush presiding. Inurnment will follow at Highland Cemetery. A private celebration with family will be held later this summer for the spreading of a portion of John’s Ash’s on his land at Flathead Lake. John was born on April 5, 1927 to Mary and John Scott in Great Falls. He was raised on the west side of Great Falls and at his grandparent’s home in Tracy. He was an only child descended from hard working, coal mining, and railroad immigrant families from Scotland and Czechoslovakia. He attended local schools including Franklin Elementary and Great Falls High. As part of the greatest generation he answered the call to duty at the early age of 17 and proudly served his country for the United States Navy. He trained in San Diego and served in the South Pacific on the escort carrier USS Casco Bay. John married the love of his life Bette Jane Bright on August 4th, 1951 at Saint Joseph’s Catholic Parish which became their life long church until its closing some years ago. He loved to tell the story of how he would drive back and forth across the Central Avenue Bridge in his convertible attempting to catch glimpses of the petite brunette as she walked to work downtown everyday with the hope of catching her eye and asking for a date. Their love affair stood the test of time until he drew his last breath. After the war John joined his father and worked for the Great Northern Railroad. His career spanned forty-four years and he retired as Chief Clerk in 1988. John and Bette built their home on the good old “West Side” where they lovingly raised four children. John loved Montana. He answered her call throughout his life. He could be found on the Fairfield Bench hunting pheasants, standing in a cold clear stream with fly pole in hand, or sitting on the mountainside in the fall basking in her glory. He shared his love of Montana’s beauty with his two sons, whom he taught and instilled in them a deep abiding love for the outdoors. Though many tried they could never out fish him. In retirement John treasured his fishing trips to Wood Lake near Augusta with his old pal and cousin Johnny Rogers. We could always expect a creel of fish and treasure trove of “fish stories”. He led by example with a firm hand. John taught his sons and daughters the value of hard work. His young family spent their summers working on their cherry orchard on the shores of Flathead Lake. This labor of love was paid with sweat equity and the rewards were our time spent together. He loved his orchard and the Flathead Valley and his spirit will linger among the cherry blossoms of spring. He enjoyed woodwork and was a fine finish carpenter. His home is a testimony to his detail. He took pride in his home and yard and passed that on to all his children. John was honest as the day is long, never cheated anyone and kept to his word. He had a very deep faith in the Lord and read his bible daily. John was a devoted father and more so a devoted grandfather and great-grandfather. He would never miss an opportunity to support his grandchildren in sports or other activities. He would often be sitting in the bleachers watching them playing baseball, or under the Friday night lights watching football games, as well as hockey and his granddaughters swimming. He also spent many occasions with special fishing trips with his grandchildren, mainly to sit and talk. He also proudly attended each of his grandchildren’s high school and college graduations. On many occasions grandpa would call the night before out of the blue to setup special fishing trips with us grandsons. It was great to sit for hours talking and enjoying each other’s company. Those are the moments that will not be forgotten and never be replicated. If it wasn’t fishing trips he had in mind, it was adventurous trips to the cabin just to get away for a day or two. He continued with his great kindness and love with his great-grandchildren. Though he was taken so soon; his memories will be passed down to them. Spring and summer will soon be here, after a hard day of yard work, he would head to the patio sit in his swing sipping an ice cold root beer or enjoying a peanut buster parfait. Dad would sit for hours during the holidays watching the twinkling lights on the Christmas tree and soft glow from the garland, he absolutely loved the Christmas season. He loved people and family, and all our family gatherings whether it were BBQ’s, holiday, or special occasions he was truly the life of the party. John was preceded in death by his parents, Mary C and John L. Scott; along with numerous aunts, uncles and relatives. John leaves behind his wife; Bette of 63 years; their four children, Greg (Heather) Scott of Great Falls, Jeff (Pam) Scott of Columbus, MT, Cathy (Dan) Dwyer of Great Falls, and Becky Scott of Great Falls; eight grandchildren and 8 great-grandchildren; Jennifer (Andy) Long their daughter, Morgan and sons Evan and Cameron of Minneapolis, Jesse (Sara) Scott and their, daughter Noa Grace of Bozeman, Josh (Samantha) Dwyer and their daughters, Taylor and Makensie of Great Falls, Jake Dwyer of Great Falls, Sarah (Scott) Anderson and their son, Rowan of Great Falls, Garrett (Erica) Scott of Billings, Drew Scott of Livingston, and Sean Scott and his daughter, Henzley of Great Falls. John’s family will forever be thankful to his wonderful “family” at Cambridge Court Assisted Living, including two very special “Angels” who quickly become his very best friends during his short stay through all your unsurpassed kindness, love and friendship thank you Bob and Marlow, Dr. Brice Addison, the Hospice staff and all who enriched his life until the end. The greatest gift us four kids could ever have asked for was GOD’S gift to us we called him DAD, GRANDPA, GREAT-PAPA! Memorials for John can be made to McLaughlin Research Institute for Alzheimer’s Research.