Jennifer Joanne Lightner Keller

Jennifer Joanne Lightner Keller, aged 48, passed away on Friday, October 14th at her home in Great Falls, after a courageous five-and-a-half-year battle with breast cancer. A Rosary Service will be held on Wednesday, October 19th in the Rose Room Chapel at Croxford Funeral Home at 6:00 PM. A Funeral Mass will be held on Thursday, October 20th at 11:00 AM at The Immaculate Heart Of Mary Catholic Church in Black Eagle. A Reception will be hosted at Croxford Funeral Home at 2:00 PM on Thursday. Burial will follow on Friday, October 21st at 11:00 AM at The Montana State Veterans Cemetery - Fort Harrison in Helena.

 Born June 10, 1974 in Conrad, MT and Raised in Choteau, MT.  She attended Choteau Elementary though the 3rd grade and was then home schooled through high school.  She attended Flathead Valley Community College and graduated with an Associate's Degree in Office Technology- Medical Secretary Option.  On April 10, 2019 she married Jeffrey D. Keller in Great Falls, MT and lived in Great Falls till she passed.  She worked as an Administrative Assistant for the Montana Department of Transportation for the last 11 ½ years, until she took a medical retirement in December 2021.

“Jenny” was a devout Catholic and always found great comfort in her faith. She was a lifelong member of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Catholic Church in Black Eagle, Montana.   She sometimes volunteered to play the organ at funerals and other church events.  She loved music and enjoyed playing her piano whenever she could.

Jenny was an avid gardener, and nurtured many vegetable and flower gardens over the years.  She was a member of the Montana Master Gardeners Association. The patio pots, and flower beds around her home were a beautiful testament to her love of gardening. 

Traveling was one of Jenny’s favorite things to do and she and her husband enjoyed many trips up and down the western United States.  Some of her favorites were to Sand Point, ID, Walla Walla, WA, Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks in Utah, The Grand Canyon, Flagstaff, Sedona, and Tucson, AZ, Seattle, WA, the Washington Coast at Long Beach, Rancho Mirage, CA.  She particularly enjoyed Santa Fe, and Taos, NM.

She and Jeff looked forward to going to Butte, Montana every July for the National and Montana Folk Festivals. They attended nine of these wonderful events since about 2009. She loved the music and the artists at the festivals.

Jennifer loved her husband, Jeff, and her friends and family deeply.  She was a kind, generous, and loving wife, daughter, sister, and friend.  She will be sadly missed by all who knew and loved her.

She leaves behind many that will miss her but none more than her beloved husband, Jeffrey D. Keller of Great Falls; mother, Marian Ries Lightner of Great Falls; sister, Debbie (Mark) Janssen of Andover, MN; brothers, Kevin (Tammie) Lightner, Jim (Laura) Lightner, and Tom (Amy) Lightner all of Choteau, MT; and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her father, Raymond V. Lightner; sister, Diane M. (Lightner) Tesch.

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