Phyllis O. Ekblad
HOT SPRINGS — Philanthropic Hot Springs Telephone Company executive, Phyllis O. Ekblad, died peacefully on July 2, 2012, of ovarian cancer, at Brendan House in Kalispell. She was born in Hitchcock, S.D., on Mar. 9, 1929 to Grant and Garnet Preston, as the youngest of three children. The family moved during the Great Depression in 1935 to Hot Springs, where her parents eventually purchased the Hot Springs Telephone Company (HSTC).
Phyllis graduated from Hot Springs High School in 1947, as the valedictorian, and married in August of 1947. Her two children, Kathryn Lynn and William Grant were born in 1950 and 1952. Motherhood was a high priority for Phyllis, who was an “honorary mother” to her children’s friends and many young people who met her over the years.
She moved from Montana to Texas and back with her border patrol husband, Gus S. Johnson. In 1960 they separated and she moved with Kathy and Bill to Spokane, where she worked for McKesson and Robbins as a clerk-typist. She was a successful working mother even before daycare centers existed.
Phyllis worked as the manager and then secretary-treasurer of the Hot Springs Telephone Company for 47 years, from 1962 to 1970 and from 1973 to 2012. During this time the modernization of the company took place through elimination of party lines and the introduction of private lines, Internet and DSL. She was well-regarded for her business savvy and generous nature. She worked for HSTC out of her home, moving the office to Kalispell in 1999.
Phyllis married her life-long friend since kindergarten, Robert B. Ekblad, an engineer for the U. S. Forest Service in Missoula, in 1973. Robert and Phyllis traveled extensively, yet found time to grow cherries at their home on Flathead Lake near Dayton. She was a fun-loving participant in all aspects of life. She downhill-skied until she was 82 years of age and was very active until her illness was diagnosed in mid-February this year. She was an avid supporter of Hot Springs charities, student scholarships, the Republican Party, many candidates, and numerous other philanthropic causes.
Phyllis is preceded in death by her parents Grant and Garnet Preston and her son William G. Johnson.
She is survived by her husband Robert B. Ekblad, her daughter Kathryn L. Johnson; her daughter-in-law Kathe A. Johnson; granddaughter Harmonee M. Johnson; her brothers Jay and Dwight Preston; and numerous nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be held in Hot Springs at the new gymnasium at 3 p.m. on July 13, 2012, to be followed by a reception at the old gym. Memorial donations may be sent to the Hot Springs Clinic, using the mailing address: The Eastern Sanders County Hospital District, P.O. Box 204, Hot Springs, MT 59845.
