Bernice Roberta (Pearson) Slater “was carried away on the wings of angels to her heavenly home” on Feb. 16, 2014.

Born April 18, 1919, she was the sixth of 14 children born to William Arthur Pearson and Leona Ester Cornelison Pearson of Ronan.

In November 1939, she married Les Slater, the love of her life, and their union brought two loving daughters into the family.

To know Bernice was to love her. She lived life to the fullest and embraced any challenge that came her way. Bernice and Les started numerous businesses in the Flathead. They were the first Volkswagen Dealer in the Pacific Northwest where she kept the books. They established the Little Brown Church in Bigfork where her roles included choir director and Sunday School superintendent. They developed what is known by many as “Streeter’s Corner” across from the Brown Church where she ran the Glacier Freeze. After a 1965 move to Spokane, she operated Lindy’s Restaurant downtown. From Spokane, their ventures took them to Petersburg, Alaska, where she plied her bookkeeping skills for Petersburg Cold Storage, and then on to Juneau, Alaska, where she worked in payroll for the State of Alaska. She and Les also managed the gas float in Juneau. They returned home to Bigfork in 1978. Following Les’ death in 1995, she spent many winters in Yuma, Ariz., where she made many wonderful friends.

Bernice’s faith was always the focal point of her daily life. Her positive approach to life was an inspiration to everyone, especially her family. If anyone needed encouragement or uplifting, she was the person to go to. She was a living example of what she believed.

Some of her fondest memories were fishing with her “Daddy” in the Ronan area when she was growing up and she never lost her love of the sport. She played high school basketball and refereed girls’ basketball for a year after graduating high school. Bernice wrote beautiful poetry inspired by her many travels. A talented and generous hostess, she loved entertaining and made sure there was always plenty of food. No one ever left Bernice’s table hungry. Her many other pastimes included golf, music and gardening. She will be especially remembered by her family and friends for her infectious laugh, and her wonderful sense of humor will be keenly missed.

She was preceded in death by her loving husband of 57 years, Leslie B. Slater; parents, Arthur and Leona Pearson; brothers, Wayne, Clem, Grant, Clair, Max, Vance, Keith and Stewart; sisters, Blanche Bullman, Marie Bullman, Erma Slater and Vida Janke; and son-in-law, Richard Guthrie.

She is survived by her brother, Burton of Moses Lake, Wash.; daughters, Myrna Hostak and husband Don, and Bonnie Guthrie-Ross and husband Lloyd, all of Bigfork; grandchildren, Mark Hostak of Charlotte, N.C., Lisa (Hostak) Rasband and husband Al of MapleValley, Wash., Tod Guthrie and wife Kaci of Boise, Idaho, and Jodi Guthrie of Vancouver, B.C.; great-grandchildren, Taylor and Grace Hostak, Blake Hudson, Chelsea and Shelby Guthrie, and Alex, Nicole and Matthew Michie.   

Bernice’s family extends a special thanks to the wonderful and caring staff at Lake View Care Center in Bigfork.

Please join us for a celebration of Bernice’s life at 1:30 p.m. on June 14 at the Little Brown Church in Bigfork.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the Bigfork QRU.