Judith Faye Mahlum Hedegaard - 77

Judi Hedegaard born in Livingston, Montana on August 26, 1940, passed away on May 9, 2018 at St. James Hospital in Butte Montana. Judi was the daughter of Karl Roy Mahlum and Jennie Bredwick Mahlum of Big Timber, Montana.

Judi attended the Bridge School and Sweet Grass County High School in the Big Timber area where she grew up. Her young years included working on the family ranch, feeding the cattle and sheep, but the horses were her first love. Peewee and Star were her favorites, and she would often be seen riding tricks on them. Judy was a stickler in tending to her chores, and a neighbor commented that "Judi was the best ranch hand he'd seen and would probably give even the strongest boy a run for his money stacking hay bales". She had three older siblings: Leonard Mahlum, Ruth Mahlum Lake and Joe Mahlum.

Following her freshman year of college at Montana State College (MSU Bozeman), she met and married Erv Hedegaard of Twin Bridges Montana who was graduating with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering at MSC. After their wedding on December 27th, 1960, Erv and Judi raised three children: Donna Hedegaard, Karen (Dale) Hedegaard Neumann and Mike (Christy) Hedegaard. Judi has four grandchildren: Doug O'Reilly, Danielle O'Reilly, Karen Hedegaard and Sofia Hedegaard.

For the first eleven years of their marriage, Judi and Erv moved their family sixteen times, culminating in their final move to Whitehall in 1972. Judi stayed active in the Zion Lutheran Church, designing and arranging flowers, and spending time with her family.

Judi was preceded in death by her parents Roy and Jennie, two of her older siblings Leonard and Ruth, and by her daughter Karen. She is survived by her husband Erv, daughter Donna and son Mike along with her grandchildren, and her brother Joe.

A memorial service will be held in Whitehall at Trinity United Methodist Church in Whitehall (102 Brooke Street) on Saturday, May 19th at 11am, followed by food and fellowship.