Rita White, 92

Rita White, 92, a woman of uncommon grace, humility, and resilient faith, passed peacefully into the welcoming arms of her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on Sept. 19, 2026, in Kalispell.

Rita was born in Lodgepole, South Dakota, on May 21, 1934, to L.D. and Merle Clark. When she was one year old, her family moved from South Dakota to Kalispell. They shipped their belongings on a railway boxcar to Whitefish, which they met after making the journey by automobile. They settled in Kalispell in a small cabin with no modern conveniences. Rita shared a bed with her two sisters, and together as a family they made a loving life with what they had.

They later moved to Bissell, a historic rural area northwest of Kalispell, where Rita’s father farmed and drove a school bus. Some of her fondest childhood memories from those times include riding her horse to her one-room schoolhouse and enjoying the companionship and mischief of her beloved pet goat.

As a young woman, Rita formed a close group of girlfriends whose friendships lasted throughout her life. They gathered each year to reminisce, laugh, and catch up. Rita was a loyal friend and trusted confidante. Once you became part of her life, she treasured you, and in her quiet way, she loved you well.

One of Rita’s friends, Marilyn Eayrs, had a brother named Aubrey who took a liking to Rita. When Aubrey left to serve in the Korean War, they began writing to each other. Rita sent him special cookies made from her mother’s recipe, and Aubrey often wrote back asking when another batch would be coming. When he returned, their correspondence blossomed into a life together. They were married on March 3, 1953.

Rita and Aubrey had four children and built a family rooted in faith and love. Tragically, 18 years into their marriage, Rita was widowed when Aubrey died of a heart condition at the age of 43.

Several years later, Rita married Wally Reis. After two short years, however, they were in a motorcycle accident together. Wally lost his life while Rita, grievously injured, miraculously recovered and found herself widowed a second time.

Rita’s pain at this moment in her life cannot be understated. But her Savior, Jesus, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, held her close even as he prepared a new blessing.

One day, Herb White, a widower, called Rita and asked her on a blind date. He knew almost immediately that she was the woman for him. When someone later asked Rita why she was marrying Herb after such a short courtship, she answered simply, “Because he healed my heart.”

Rita embraced her marriage to Herb and helped raise his three remaining teenage children, loving them as her own. Together, Rita and Herb would endure the loss of these three children at different times. Having come to know grief so intimately, they spent a season participating in The Compassionate Friends, offering understanding and comfort to other parents grieving the loss of a child.

Through every season, even at her lowest point and in her greatest darkness, God himself remained faithful and drew her near, for he is close to the brokenhearted and a comfort in time of grief. Where Rita could have toppled into bitterness and become resentful after losing those closest to her, to her credit, she responded to the power of the Holy Spirit’s gentle hand, exemplifying to all who knew her a gentle, loving kindness, which is reflective of the heart of our Savior Jesus Christ. Yet sorrow was only one part of Rita’s life.

She taught her family to embrace the joy of life wherever it could be found. She cherished time with her siblings, especially gatherings around a table filled with games, laughter, and the simple pleasure of being together.

Rita also welcomed adventure. Aubrey once took the family up the Alaska Highway in a 1948 GMC school bus he had converted into a motor home. They traveled to Alaska to help build the Alaska Bible Institute. Years later, Herb brought new adventures into Rita’s life through cross-country drives to visit family in the South and spontaneous trips into Canada.

As Rita’s family grew, so did her heart. One of the most tangible ways her family experienced her love was through the quilts she made with her own hands. She created colorful quilts for her grandchildren, inviting each of them to choose favorite colors and fabrics so that every quilt would be uniquely theirs.

Later, as those grandchildren began having children of their own, Rita stitched baby quilts for the next generation. She continued for as long as her hands allowed, until the babies became too many and her hands grew too tired. Rita’s quilts reflected the love she brought to every part of her colorful life, including the painful pieces she never would have chosen.

She made room for so many in her life, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, lifelong friends, grieving parents, and people in her community who needed a meal. She particularly found joy in serving at the community kitchen at the Alliance Church, now known as Adventure Church, on Second Ave. W.
She served quietly and without fanfare, noticing where help was needed and offering what she could. In all these ways, Rita took what life placed in her hands and made it into something that brought warmth to those around her.

Rita is preceded in death by her late husbands, Aubrey Eayrs (1953-1971), Wally Reis (1975-1977), Herb White (1979-2025); her stepchildren, Debi White, Duane White, and Doug White; and her siblings, Carol Hodgson, Phyllis Claridge, and Bud Clark.

She is survived by her daughters, Gayle Hubbard, Cheryl Olstad and her husband, Roy; her sons, Michael Eayrs and his wife, Cindy, Steve Eayrs and his wife, Kim; her stepson, Dan White and his wife, Michelle. She is also survived by 14 grandchildren, 34 great-grandchildren, eight great-great-grandchildren, and sister, Karen Obermayer, along with extended family and dear friends whose lives were made richer by knowing and loving her.

Rita will be remembered by all who knew her for her grace, resilience, humility, forgiveness, open heart, enduring faith, and especially her tender love. She knew grief deeply, but she also knew laughter, adventure, friendship, family, service, and the quiet beauty of ordinary days shared with people she loved.

After a long life of loving others well, Rita has gone home to the One she trusted throughout it all. She is missed dearly by those she left behind, but we know she is enjoying the presence of her Savior, having entered the rest He has prepared for her.

A memorial service to honor Rita will be held at 3 p.m. on Oct. 22 at Adventure Church, 348 Second Ave. W., Kalispell.

A luncheon will be served following the service.