Winnifred Lorraine 'Rene' Lock

Winnifred Lorraine “Rene” (Jones) Lock died of natural causes at the Valley View Nursing Home in Glasgow, Mont., on Sept. 17, 2009.

She was born to Frank and Winnie (Kent) Jones on Feb. 17, 1924. She started her education in the rural elementary Jones School located by Miles Crossing. She graduated from Hinsdale High School in 1941, where she was a member of the girls' basketball team, along with her sisters, Blanche and Marge. She continued her education at Montana State College in Bozeman, graduating in 1945 with a degree in agricultural sciences. She also attended a summer quarter at Columbia University in New York and later continued taking classes of interest to her at MSU-Billings. She held a lifetime teaching certificate. (These are no longer being issued.)

On June 30, 1949, she married Frank Lock, also of Hinsdale. He had the contract for rural mail carrier on the Thoeny route. During the summer months, she took on this task. She taught science, English, biology, physics and chemistry. She also served as the girls' basketball coach and was active with the Girls Scouts. She organized an informal riding club, and on weekends she and the girls would bring their horses for a day of fun.
She continued to teach after she and Frank purchased the Town Ranch on the UL Bend south of Malta. After condemnation by the Federal Government for establishment of the Charlie Russell Wildlife Refuge, they purchased a ranch near Lodge Grass in 1970. They moved to Billings in 1980, where they continued to ranch with two places, one near Boyd and one near Red Lodge. While living in Billings, she worked for a Real Estate firm in Columbus and became a licensed agent. Rene continued living in Billings until the fall of 2006, when she moved to Glasgow.

She will always be remembered by all she knew as a kind and generous person. Her former students remember her as a fair, but strict and impartial teacher. (Those who were related, however, were expected to work harder than the others.)

She was close to her nieces and nephews and enjoyed taking them home for weekends and weeks in the summertime. She was a lover of animals, especially Appaloosa horses and her German Shepherd and Blue Heeler dogs.
She was a member of the Hinsdale Methodist Church and American Legion Auxiliary Unit #45. Traveling was enjoyable to her. She made several trips to England and often attended the Shakespeare in the Park in Ashland, Ore., but North Valley County was always home to her.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Frank Lock; ten sisters, Alice McElvain, Helen Jones, Frances Gilliam, Lorena Werner, Blanche Diedrick, Marge Bordwell, Donna Jones, Nellie Greer, Wilma Jones and Mona Stordahl; and four brothers, Harvey Jones, Richard Werner, Tom Jones and Frank Jones Jr.

The last of her siblings, she is survived by a brother-in-law, Richard Stordahl; sisters-in-law, Leora Jones and Darlene Jones; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Funeral services were held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 23, at the Hinsdale Methodist Church with interment following at the Hillview Cemetery in Hinsdale. Bell Mortuary of Glasgow was in charge of arrangements.