Elaine was born June 14, 1942 in Dayton, Washington to Everett and Nettie Stearns. She graduated from Dayton High School, and pursued an accounting program at Kinman Business University in Spokane, WA while working in the business office of the Anaconda Company’s copper refinery in Great Falls, MT during the summers. During days off from her summer job, she often visited her sister, Juanita Works and her family near Big Sandy, MT. She and Thomas (Tom) McCauley were married on December 5, 1964 in Dayton, where they had both grown up and truly were soul-mates. They made their home in Spokane, WA and over the following ten years they were joined by five children. Caring for her family and helping Tom tend rather large gardens kept Elaine quite busy, but she still made time for sewing, upholstery, and temporary bookkeeping work to help make ends meet.
The young family relocated to north central Montana in 1974 where they were joined by the last of their six children. Elaine’s hobbies were cooking and baking, gardening, sewing, and livestock. All of which came in very handy because times were pretty tight. But she somehow always managed to put 3 full meals on the table every day for her large family and send her children to school without their knees showing – fashions were sure different back then than today! Elaine was always her children’s biggest supporter and encourager and living example for how to navigate life staying close to the Lord. She and Tom made sure their family was in Sunday school and church on Sunday, even when out of town, unless there was a BIG reason why not. And in those occasions, there was usually church at home. She supported them through various 4-H projects and activities in the community and encouraged them to follow their dreams. They lived in several different communities around north central Montana while raising their children, eventually settling just outside Billings on a few acres near Huntley with the house finally to themselves again. Elaine lost her inseparable soul-mate, Tom, in early 1998 after 34 years together. In the following years, Elaine still kept busy with her same hobbies, but added visiting her children’s families which by then had spread far and wide. She was also able to enjoy occasionally joining them on their own vacation trips to other places including Alaska and Hawaii and the coast of Oregon. She eventually sold her Montana home and moved in with her daughter Hiedi and her family for a few years before getting her own apartment again on the NW side of Colorado Springs, CO in 2018 nearby to her daughters Heather and Jill. All the while still making trips to visit the rest of her children’s families from time to time and joining in with whatever they had going on.
Elaine was with Hiedi’s family in Portland when she fell ill. Elaine left the bonds of this world and was promoted into an eternity with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ early on the Sunday morning of September 25, 2022. She wasn’t going to miss THIS church service! A race well run (2 Timothy 4:7-8) followed by what we are promised in the most wonderful praise and worship service anyone who believes in the Lord could ever ask for (John 3:14-18; Luke 23:43; Philippians 1:21; 2 Corinthians 5:6-8).
Elaine was preceded in death by her beloved and devoted husband, Tom, her parents, her brothers: Donald Stearns, William (Bill) Stearns, brother and sister-in-law Gerald and Iris Stearns, her sisters: sister and brother-in-law Mary and Frank Snow, sister and brother-in-law Juanita and Marvin Works, and niece Janet Snow and grand-daughters Angela Moir and Rachel Entrikin. Elaine is survived by her children: Blaine (Sharyl), Houston, TX; Hiedi (Tyson) Cummins, Portland, OR; Holly (Doug) Baird, Zurich, MT; Jill (Michael) Wells, Campbell, OH; Heather (Justin) Thompson, Elizabeth, CO; and Abe (Tonya), Billings, MT. Her 22 grandchildren are: Charles, Ben, Aaron, Janelle, Jacob, Jarod, Alyssa, Lauren, Garrett, Kyndall, Taylor, Brianne, Allison, Spencer, Leah, Zach, Katherine, Alexander, Tabetha, Isaac, Julia, and Selina as well as 11 great-grandchildren: Isabella, Leonidas, Lydia, Isaiah, Rebecca, Haddassah, Miriam, Jeremiah, Josiah, Khloe, and Lillian.
A graveside service will be held at 11:00 a.m., Thursday, October 6, 2022, at Custer National Cemetery, Garryowen, MT.
Service Schedule
Graveside Service
11:00 a.m.
Thursday October 6, 2022
Custer National Cemetery
Garryowen, Montana 59031
Service Schedule
Graveside Service
11:00 a.m.
Thursday October 6, 2022
Custer National Cemetery
Garryowen, Montana 59031
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Jamie hess says
I worked with Elaine in Billings at the credit union. So sorry to hear of her passing she was a c
Great lady