Celia Mary Richie

Celia was born in Chicago to Frank and Stella (Seulewski) Kowalczyk, who both came to the United States from Poland. She was the first daughter of their 9 children. The family settled in Roundup, MT, where Celia attended school and worked at Vikers Hospital. Upon graduation from High School in 1945, she went into nurse's training through the Cadet Corps. She left nursing school in 1947 and moved to Shelby, where she married Merland Billedeaux in 1948. In 1950 the couple had a daughter, Victoria Charlene. They later divorced. In 1953, Celia married Elliot Richie, who was later killed in August 1956 in a car accident. They had settled in Havre. Their son, Elliot Franklin Richie, was born in October, two months after the accident. In 1957, she moved to Lewistown to raise her children. She went to work at St. Joseph's Hospital in April 1959 and was known to her co-workers as "Richie". In 1968, Celia passed her state board exams and became a LPN. She worked in the operating and emergency rooms for 18 years. She helped in other areas of the hospital with her favorite being the nursery where she enjoyed rocking and cuddling the new borns. Celia was devoted to the hospital where she worked for 38 years. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, four brothers and a sister. Left to cherish her memory are her children, Vicki Billedeaux of Lewistown and son Elliot (Tracy) Richie of Amarillo, TX; a brother, Harry Kowalczyk of Roundup and sisters, Emily Schenck of Lewistown and Katie Sweet of Culbertson; 7 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren. It was said that Celia was strong-willed and did things her way, on her terms. Memorials in her name may be made to the Central Montana Medical Center.

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