Jean Margaret Kanzler

Jean Kanzler, 88, passed on February 11, 2014 in Livingston, Montana. She was born Jean Margaret Smith on March 3, 1925 to James Smith and Abby Margaret Anthony in Portland, Oregon. She attended Oregon State University and was a member of the Alpha Gamma Delta sorority in the mid 1940s. There she met and married a Marine Corp Captain, Hal Kanzler, who fought in the Battle of Okinawa in WWII. They moved to Hungry Horse in 1948 with their infant son, Jim, where Hal worked as an engineer on Hungry Horse Dam. A second son, Jerry, was born in 1951 before moving to Columbia Falls where Hal became an engineer at the Anaconda Aluminum plant. Jean and Hal were an avid outdoor couple, canoeing, fishing and bird hunting in Oregon and then in Montana as they raised their two sons. Jean got the family started with alpine skiing and the foursome began skiing Big Mountain circa 1954. Home movies of Jean show her as graceful and athletic in her skiing style and Jean won a women’s giant slalom race in 1959. Jean, Hal and their sons hiked and backpacked together through Glacier Park, the Bob Marshal Wilderness and the Mission Mountains, canoed and fished the lakes and streams in the 1950s and 60s. Jean’s men became mountain climbers. Jean was part of a vast social network in Columbia Falls and the Flathead Valley. She played in several bridge clubs and was a member of the Episcopal Church. The Kanzlers moved to Butte when Hal was promoted in 1965. Hal died unexpectedly in 1967. Jean moved to Bozeman with her teenaged sons soon after to make it easier for Jim and Jerry to attend MSU. Tragedy struck again when Jerry was killed with four other young mountaineers attempting to make the first winter ascent of Mt. Cleveland in 1969. Jean journeyed to Hawaii in 1970 on a spiritual quest after Jerry’s death and returned to Montana, living in Bridger Canyon and Three Forks before buying a house in Bozeman circa 1977. She immersed herself in gardening and continued to make outings to Glacier, Yellowstone Park and the rivers of southwest Montana with a small group of friends. Jean moved into assisted living in Manhattan in 2003 and to Livingston Health and Rehab in 2012 until her passing. She was preceded in death by Hal, Jerry and Jim in 2011. She is survived by one grandson, Jamie Kanzler, Park City, UT, and his wife, Jennifer and two great grandchildren, James Dylan,10, and Jacqueline, 5. Jean Kanzler’s remains have been cremated. A memorial service and burial next to her husband and sons will take place at a later date. When Jean buried Jerry, she ended the eulogy saying, “God speed, Jer.” We trust that Jean Kanzler has at last been reunited with the men she once lost and the trail ahead will be easier and joyful. God speed, Jean.