- Date Of Birth: June 1, 1926
- Date Of Death: January 28, 2008
- State: Montana
Margaret Alice Toren, age 81, passed away early Monday morning January 28, 2008 at Kalispell Regional Medical Center in Kalispell, Montana. She was born June 1, 1926 in Conrad, Montana to Jacob and Margaret Louise (Gretton) Gemar.
Alice was the only daughter and youngest of four children. She joined her three older brothers; John Albert Gemar, Arthur Henry “Billy” Gemar and Richard Earl Gemar. She was named after her mother, Margaret, and maternal grandmother, Alice.
Alice grew up on the family farm near Agawam, Montana. She was raised to be a hard worker and did much of the cooking and gardening for her family there. She attended elementary school at the Mohardt School and the Weist School near Conrad, Montana. She finished her education through the eighth grade, but was unable to attend high school because of finances. Even though her family had a piano, Alice never had formal lessons. She taught herself enough, however, that she was able to play the organ for her church that met at the Mohardt School. As she played, she sang alto while her mom sang soprano and her dad sang tenor.
As a teenager, Alice worked in the oil field north of her home cleaning houses for various families. She also spent some time in Great Falls, Montana with her maternal grandparents. Alice first met John Toren in December 1939, when they were the witnesses at the wedding of John’s sister Thallia and Alice’s brother Albert. She and John were married four years later on January 24, 1944 in Great Falls, Montana. John went to work and bought a farm located nine miles south of Valier. They farmed there until 1966 when they retired and moved to Lakeside, Montana. John and Alice were the parents of five children; Arthur John, Edwin Harm, Sharon Kay, Shirley Ann and Margaret Jean. John passed away in 1992. A year later, Alice decided to move “back home” to Conrad, Montana. She lived there until the fall of 2005, when she moved back to the Kalispell area to live with her children. She also spent some time with her daughter in Joplin before moving to the Pondera Medical Center in Conrad, Montana on September, 2007. In January 19, 2008 Alice moved back to Kalispell.
She is preceded in death by her parents, three brothers, her husband two grandsons and one great great granddaughter.
She is survived by her two sons and three daughters; Art Toren and wife Dana of Kalispell, MT; Ed Toren and wife Lana of Columbia Falls, MT; Sharon Koch of Kalispell, MT; Shirley Colbry and husband Earl of Joplin, MT; and Marge Berland and Rick of Kalispell, MT; also 16 grandchildren and 19 great grandchildren with 1 great great grandchild.
