Elizabeth Preston
RONAN — Elizabeth Hildreth Cummings Preston, 99, died from natural causes on Wednesday, July 9, 2025, at St. Luke Extended Care Facility in Ronan, with her family by her side. Beth was born June 14, 1926, in Sidney, Montana, the daughter of Rial Wilson Cummings and Gladys Evangeline (Wheeler) Cummings. Her father, the school superintendent in the nearby prairie community of Lambert, and her mother, a homemaker and artist, always encouraged Beth and her two brothers to widen their horizons.
Beth’s long and fruitful life was devoted first to service and secondly to adventure. She was a pillar of the Ronan community for decades, serving on many civic and non-profit boards. Beth and her husband Jay modeled a life of commitment to the greater good, and their example has inspired many.
Beth wore many hats during her extraordinary life. Her roles included that of wife, mother, grandmother, nurse, businesswoman, friend, teacher, philanthropist for local causes, and world-traveler. People were naturally drawn to Beth’s sharp mind, humor and generosity. She lived by the credo of inclusiveness, and she was gracious and generous in a very down-to-earth manner. One family friend wrote, “To me she was the epitome of grace and kindness.”
In 1940, the family moved to Plains, where Beth graduated from high school. She enrolled in the Cadet Nurse Corps during World War II and trained as a nurse in Great Falls. After World War II ended, she earned her BS in nursing from Montana State College in Bozeman. She first met Jay Preston, an engineering student from Hot Springs, while a student at Bozeman.
Beth moved to the East Coast with a close girlfriend and fellow nurse. She worked as a nurse and taught nursing in Boston and New York City until her late twenties. During these years, she became reacquainted with Jay, while he was in the Air Force in Rome, New York. Beth left her East Coast nursing career and moved back to Montana, and she and Jay were married in Plains on Feb. 14, 1954, beginning a close partnership in all things that lasted for 65 years.
In the first years of their marriage, Beth and Jay lived in Seattle and both worked at Boeing. Beth loved her career of nursing but found the work at Boeing to be less satisfying. She described the job as a lot of down time waiting to hand out an aspirin or bandage a finger. After two years, they moved to Missoula where Jay became the general manager of the Blackfoot Telephone Cooperative. Beth and Jay built the first of three houses together and started their family. Jay Wilson and Elizabeth Ann were both born in Missoula, and Judith Garnet was born right after the family moved to Ronan.
In 1960, Beth and Jay purchased the Ronan Telephone Company. With Beth’s parents, older brother Rial and his wife Rhoda, Beth and Jay purchased lakeshore property on the west shore of Flathead Lake and built the “Lakehouse.” It became and remains the center of gravity for the Preston and Cummings clan.
Beth was a progressive force within the Ronan Telephone Company. She made sure that all female customers were listed on telephone bills so that the women could also build their own credit history. Over the years, Beth worked to protect and defend the role of women in the corporation. She promoted pay equity for male and female employees and persistently lobbied for women to have equal chances for promotion within the company. Together, Beth and Jay made the Ronan Telephone Company a mainstay in the city of Ronan.
Beth was always civic-minded. She served as a board member for St. Luke Hospital and was President of the Ronan Chamber of Commerce. Beth raised money to build the Ronan Community Center, and she was a generous donor and volunteer at both Safe Harbor and the Bread Basket Food Bank. In 1976, Beth and Jay were leaders in a community drive to raise $600,000 to build the Extended Care Facility attached to the Ronan hospital, where they both spent the last years of their lives.
Adventure was central to Beth and Jay’s life together. As newlyweds, they worked together to restore a small private airplane. The family flew the plane all over the country. Family life in Montana always included outdoor activities, including sailing, swimming, water skiing and snow skiing. Many of Beth’s happiest times were spent with crowds of family and friends at the Lakehouse. Beth had a joyous and exuberant laugh that will be greatly missed at crowded dinners at the Lakehouse, picking huckleberries in the mountains, or playing charades with eager children.
In later years, Beth and Jay frequently made international trips, ultimately visiting six continents. They always traveled with a group of family or friends, combining the richness of learning about other lands and cultures with the opportunity to reconnect with dear friends.
Beth was preceded in death by her parents, Rial and Gladys Cummings; her older brother, Rial; sisters-in-law, Rhoda, Gerry and Phyllis; and her husband Jay, who passed in 2019.
She is survived by her younger brother, Dean; and her three children, Jay (Cynthie) Preston, Elizabeth Preston, Ph.D., and Judy Preston (Anais Starr). She is also survived by nine grandchildren, Matthew (Savannah) Preston, David Preston and Ezra Preston; Nathan (Dana) Cantlon and Zac (Jessica) Cantlon; Katy Lee (Anshil Popli) and Jayson Lee; Patricia Johnson, and Lorien Johnson; as well as seven great-grandchildren: Isaac, Toby and Elise Cantlon; Evan and Hailey Hendrickson; Christopher Van Gunten and Oakley Charette, as well as many beloved nieces and nephews.
The family would like to thank all the staff of St. Luke Extended Care for their professionalism, loving care and support. This exceptional facility provided a home for the final three years of Beth’s life, and four years of Jay’s life.
A memorial service celebrating Beth’s life will be held on Friday, Aug. 1, at 3 p.m. It will take place at The Mission Valley United Methodist Church on Highway 93, just south of Ninepipe Lodge, 70715 US Hwy. 93, St. Ignatius.
Memories and condolences may be sent to the family at: www.lakefuneralhomeandcremation.com.
Arrangements are under the care of the Lake Funeral Home and Crematory.
