Judy Maureen Christensen

Judy Maureen Patton Christensen, 76, of Great Falls, passed away February 12, 2019. Judy was born May 15, 1942 in Great Falls to William "Crip" and Eleanor Patton, and was raised in Portage, MT. She attended the one-room Portage School through 8th grade. She was a devoted "farm" daughter, helping her mom raise three younger siblings. She lived with a family in Great Falls for two years while attending Central Catholic High School, and finished her last two years driving other Portage-area kids to town. After graduating she attended Kinman Business School in Spokane while living in the Devonshire Hotel annex. Her first job was at the Anaconda Company where she met her husband Roger Christensen and soon started her family with son Brian. After moving to Butte their family grew to include Scott, Bonnie, Karen and Eric. The youngest was six months old when Roger accepted a job on the island of Bougainville in Papua New Guinea. For five and 1/2 years they lived in the tropics and had some amazing experiences including seeing the famous Mud Men of New Guinea. Roger would get many comments about how brave Judy was to travel so far with five small kids. After leaving the South Pacific, the family moved to San Francisco and then Saudi Arabia. Judy loved her time traveling and meeting other expat wives and throwing her renowned dinner and disco parties. After moving back to Great Falls in 1979, she continued to travel to Roger's jobs including a favorite trip to South Africa. She and Roger separated but remained friends. Judy had a love for art and was a great assistant to her sister Betty at art shows, which led to her new career at the Glass Art Shop. She worked for almost twenty years in a field she relished. Judy moved on to working at the Expo Park and Mansfield Center ticket offices and always loved helping people. She worked up until she fell ill recently. Her death came as a shock to her loving family but she passed peacefully. We all expected her to be back at her jobs soon. Judy's life was amazing and she always said she had no regrets. Her ability to converse with others everywhere she went was warmly felt and she will be deeply missed by those who loved her. Her interests were vast, from organizing figure skating competitions to enjoying her beloved bowling league, from driving in the country spotting wild life to sitting on her class reunion committee. Judy also rarely missed Sunday Mass at Holy Spirit, which she attended regularly along with her good friend, Rose and many other long-time friends and family. Other highlights of Judy's life in recent years included attending her monthly "Bunco Babes" parties, keeping up with the many academic and recreational accomplishments of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren and of course, tending to and admiring all the beautiful flowers on her deck, particularly the yellow ones. She is survived by her children, Brian and Lisa Christensen, Scott and Jamie (Jacobs) Christensen, Bonnie (Russell Brainard) Christensen, Karen and Erik Powell, Eric and Michelle Christensen; grandchildren, Megan (Marcus Patterson) Christensen, Mark (Jerycha Bohanon) Christensen, Katie and Derek Maschio, Marissa (Derek Wagner) Jacobs, Abbie (Chris Schneiderhan) Christensen, Greta and Sonja Powell, Saylor and Seychelle Brainard, Tucker and Kennedy Christensen; her much adored great-grandchildren, Connor, Sidney, Ruby, Rhett, Max and Liesl and brothers Bob Patton and Tom Patton. She was preceded in death by her beloved parents; her recently deceased sister Betty and her companion of over twenty years, Clinton Witte. A celebration of Judy's life will be held Sunday, February 17, 2019 at 2:00 p.m. at the Eagles Lodge. Please bring a single flower (or bouquet if preferred) to the celebration in honor of Judy. Burial will take place this summer in the family plot at Riverside Cemetery in Fort Benton. Please send memorials to Great Falls Symphony Association P.O. Box 1078 Great Falls, MT 59403 or Mansfield Foundation c/o Paris Gibson Square 1400 1st Ave North Great Falls, MT 59401. Condolences for the family may be made online at www.SchniderFuneralHome.com.