Allene Edna Houle Cole
courtesy photo
Allene Cole
CORVALLIS, OREGON — Allene Edna Houle Cole lived a long and love-filled life. She was born and raised on the Confederated Salish Kootenai and Pend d’ Oreille (Flathead) Reservation near Ronan in 1919 to Fred and Hellen Houle. She peacefully passed away on April 10, 2017, at the age of 97, at her granddaughter, Kristin Emminger’s, home in Corvallis, Oregon. She had recently moved there with her daughter, Betty Chenette, from their home in Charlo. She was the second oldest Elder of the Flathead Nation.
Daughters, Martha Swonson of Dixon, Betty and Sally Cole-Whiffen (Rob) of East Haven, Connecticut; and her grandchildren, Rebecca Duffy (Robert) of Astoria, Oregon, Cinda Baum of Seattle, Washington, Patty Job of Whidbey Island, Washington, Kristin Emminger (Bill) of Corvallis, Oregon, Amy Baum (Eric Jeschke) of Hilo, Hawaii, Michael Schroedel of Dixon, Wyatt Baum (Lisa) of New Haven, Connecticut, and Jeff Swonson of Missoula, and her 10 great-grand children, Allena Salas, Jaden Emminger, Momi and Tyler Jeschke, Marlon and Lily Clementine Baum, Brittany Moon, Brandon Job, Janelle Chase, and Jenny Job; five great great-grandchildren, and numerous nephews and nieces will miss her sweet and generous spirit as Matriarch of the family.
Her siblings were Lois Dupuis of Polson, Martha June Dullaghan of Indianapolis, Indiana, Fred Houle, Bob Houle, and Rosemary Kugler, all local residents (and deceased), and Lora ( James) Cole, of Finley Point in Polson.
Allene grew up in the early part of the 20th Century when Montana was quite a different world, but still the mountains are there, the same, keeping watch. She had many stories to tell about the early days of riding to the one-room Glacier View school house outside of Ronan in a horse drawn sleigh; or being loaded, by her dad, on to one horse with her two sisters and riding to school. One day June fell off and they had to go back home to get help putting her back on. At the end of the day, the teacher would load them up again. They, at one time, had a horse drawn school bus made out of an old chicken coop.
Allene married Daniel Cole who had moved to Montana from Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl of the 1930’s. During WWII, they and their first two little girls moved, with Dan’s folks, to Seattle, where they worked at the Boeing Airplane facility. After the war, they resided in Juneau, Alaska, where they raised the girls, having added another one while in Seattle. Allene had an upbeat and optimistic personality that easily enjoyed wherever she was and whomever she was with. She worked as a secretary for several Federal Agencies before Alaska became a state and, upon returning to the Flathead Reservation, she was employed by the Forest Service and the Tribe. When she and Dan returned to Montana after 16 years, they took over the family farm near Dixon.
Allene once remarked that she had had three “loves of her life.” Her second husband was Bill Martin with whom she started a campground between Ravalli and Dixon. After his death, at the age of 78, she fell in love, and married, her third love, John Cole, whom she had known all her adult life. They had 10 good years together, taking care of each other and appreciating the “really golden” years. They enlarged the campground in to a fulltime mobile home court, “Cole’s Court”, and drove back and forth to Florida and Oklahoma for several years, well in to their 80’s, to spend the winter with John’s family.
Many pleasant hours were spent with friends at the Dixon Community Church and the Dixon Senior Center where she was very active for years. In lieu of flowers, donations in honor of Allene, would be welcome at the Boys and Girls Club of the Flathead Reservation, 63055 U.S. Highway 93, Ronan, MT, 59864.
Allene will be interred in the Pleasant View Cemetery in St. Ignatius, looking out at the beautiful Mission Range of the Rocky Mountains in the valley where she began her journey.
All who knew her rejoice at that privilege and she will be sorely missed. It is impossible to remember her without smiling.
