Faye Leila Ricci

PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF DATE AND TIME! FAYE LEILA (WILLIAMS) RICCI Faye Leila (Williams) Ricci, 97, of Livingston died Tuesday morning, February 19, 2013 at Livingston HealthCare Hospital. Visitation will be from 3 - 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 24 at Franzen-Davis Funeral Home, 118 No. 3rd St. in Livingston. Vigil will be 7:00 p.m. Sunday, February 24 and Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:00 a.m. Monday, February 25, both at St. Mary's Catholic Church. The Rev. Leo McDowell will officiate. Graveside committal and burial will be in Calvary Cemetery. Memories and condolences may be shared at www.franzen-davis.com. Faye was born October 31, 1915 on the family farm near Washburn, North Dakota, the fourth of nine children of Oscar and Ethel (Kneeland) Williams. As a small child she barely survived the flu epidemic of 1918, and remembered learning to walk again, with the help of her two older sisters, one on each side. She also remembered holding on to the edge of the kitchen table and walking around while her sisters cheered her on. Faye attended country schools in the area until Christmas vacation of her eighth grade. Due to the fact that her family became ill with smallpox and they were placed under quarantine, she postponed her education in order to help nurse them back to health. As a young girl most of her summers were spent with her grandma and grandpa Williams near Falkirk, and then Wilton, No. Dak. During her high school years, Faye boarded in the town of Washburn and washed dishes, cleaned and cooked to pay for her room and board. Because she would not always be able to go home on weekends, Faye attended school functions and church. She had a talent for gymnastics and tumbling and delighted audiences with her routines. After graduating from Washburn High School in 1934, Faye lived in Mandan, No. Dak. before moving to Bismarck where she shared an apartment with her younger sister. They worked at different jobs during the Great Depression, including housekeeping and serving. She served in private residences and for public gatherings, including for a national convention of the Girl Scouts of America during the winter of 1935. One of the honored guests she had the privilege of serving was Mrs. Herbert Hoover. While in Bismarck she and her friends also attended a dance where the Lawrence Welk Band was playing. In 1936 Faye traveled west with her girl friend's family, visiting Yellowstone National Park and then Belgrade, Mont. Faye's father happened to be working in Belgrade, harvesting peas for the Bozeman Cannery. She remained in Bozeman where she worked for Holden's restaurant and as a housekeeper at the home of Mrs. Chambers. The Chambers owned Chambers Fisher Department Store. In 1937, Faye attended a dance with her friends and met Michael "Mac" Ricci. They dated for about 15 months and were married on December 17, 1938 in St. Mary's Catholic Church in Livingston. They lived in the home they built on North I Street in Livingston, where they raised their family. They then lived in California during the war, in Cooke City where they owned and operated a campground, and eventually at Pine Creek, where they built their dream home, moving there in1965. Faye was a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church and was very active in Catholic Daughters, serving two terms as State Regent. She and Mac enjoyed traveling to watch their sons play for the Park County High School Rangers and the U of M Grizzlies. They were also 'snowbirds', visiting Nevada, Arizona, California and Texas. Mac died in 1991. Faye was also a member of the Park County Senior Citizens and the Park County Pioneer Society. She volunteered for the Widowed Persons Support Group, Home Bound Communion, Meals on Wheels, and as an election judge. She continued to enjoy traveling to visit friends and family, as well as a trip to Italy in 1993. Survivors include her son, Francis (Kay) Ricci of Centennial, Colo.; two daughters, Arlene (Roger) Johnson of Belgrade, Mont., and Joann (David) Gibson of Springdale and Livingston, Mont.; a daughter-in-law - Janet (Roger) Hinther of Missoula, Mont.; brother, John Williams of Sunnyvale, Calif.; sister Dorothy Bailey of Colorado Springs, Colo.; nine grandchildren; twenty great-grandchildren; six great-great-grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews. In addition to her husband, Faye was preceded in death by her parents; five sisters, a brother; and a son, Paul Ricci in 1982. If so desired, memorials may be directed to St. Mary's Catholic Church, P.O. Box 646, or to St. Mary's School, 511 S. F St., both in Livingston, MT 59047; or to the charity of the donor's choice.