Ira "Bud" Elliott

Ira “Bud” Elliott of Great Falls passed away on January 8, 2025, of cancer. He was 84.
Bud was born on April 6, 1940, to Chuck and Evelyn Elliott on a farm outside of Mullen, NE. After graduating from Mullen High School, Bud joined the Airforce and spent 21 years in service of our country, including two tours in Vietnam.

In 1973, Bud married Marilyn Sonnenfelt in Mullen. They went on to have two children, Mark and Cheryl.
Upon retiring from the military, he achieved an associate’s degree in Electronics and Repair from Northern Montana College in Havre. He went on to start his own business, then later worked for Sears, of which he would retire a second time.

As a farm kid, and a military man, Bud had a desire to work and serve, and retirement did not slow him down. He was obsessed with fitness, spending the early morning either jogging the roads of town or at the Malmstrom gym.
After his morning workout, you could find him in the garden, tinkering in his shop, or volunteering for a multitude of local agencies. He volunteered for the Red Cross, CERT, Salvation Army, and Hospice.

Bud was preceded in death by his parents, Chuck and Evelyn, Joyce (sister), Ed (brother-in-law), Mary Alice (sister), and Dawn Michelle (niece).

He is survived by his wife, Marilyn; son, Mark (Sarah, Josie, and Emma); daughter, Cheryl (Alix), Myrna (sister) and Pete Boyer, Jan (sister), and Lynn Horwart.

Bud will be buried at Fort Harrison, home of the Montana State Veteran’s Cemetery.  He requested not to have a service. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Semper Fi fund.