L
illian Hebert, 100, of Bonesteel, South Dakota, died at the Butte Healthcare Center on Monday, October 10.

The youngest daughter of Herman and Ida Jons, she was born on April 2, 1916, and the roots she firmly established on her family's 160-acre homestead southwest of Bonesteel kept her close.  She lived more than 90 years of her life within that small community where she dedicated decades of commitment to her Lord, taught hundreds of students, and helped build even more vibrancy into the small town she loved.

She attended Southern State Teachers College in Springfield for one year and earned her teaching certificate.  She taught in a one-room schoolhouse south of Bonesteel and returned to Southern State for another year—a year in which this small shy blonde was selected as Miss Southern, the homecoming queen.

She then did her student teaching in Lake Andes and taught at an elementary school in Mitchell.  While at Southern she had met Ray Hebert, a dark and athletic young man from Jefferson.  She married Ray in 1944, and they both taught in Burke until he entered World War II and was stationed in France.  Following the war, they moved to Bonesteel, where she taught many classes until 1979.  She spent more than 32 years in the classroom, teaching first grade most of the time.

Lillian also supported the Bonesteel community.  She was an active member of Zion Lutheran Church—teaching both Sunday school and vacation bible school.  She was also enthusiastic as a sixty-year member of the General Federation of Women's Club, the American Legion Auxiliary, and the Bonesteel Alumni Association.  She avidly spent her alone time constructing jigsaw puzzles, drying flowers she collected, and sending homemade cards to people she was close to.

All those who knew Lillian, remember her incredible memory and curiosity.  She would sort through the newspapers and the piles on her tables to find exactly the right picture, article, letter, or tidbit, something that she could share with family, friends, and many former students.  She was always a teacher and an intelligent learner, thoughtfully caring for others.

After the death of Ray in 2000, she spent several years in the Haisch Haus and the last six years in the Butte Healthcare Center.  She continued her interest in social activities and wrote the Haisch Haus News and the Butte Healthcare News for several years.

Lillian is survived by her four children: Janis (Tom) Hausmann, Yankton, SD;   Jolene Spooner, Kingsley, IA; Steve (Anne) Hebert, Denver, CO; Sharon (Don) Lagana, Bonita Springs, FL; six grandchildren; Mark (Nicole) Hausmann, Anne (Luke) Jackson, Chris (Kristin) Hausmann, Tim Hausmann, Shawn (Heather) Spooner, John Hebert, and Anna Hebert; and four step-grandchildren—Jessica (Jason) Dennee, Gian Lagana, George Plaven, and Barbara (Mike) Jacobs.  She also has thirteen great grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her husband Ray, her  brothers:  Arthur Jons, Emil Jons, and Edward Jons; her sisters: Hilda Moll and Helen Schultz, her son-in-law Owen Spooner, and her very special "Irish"  brother and sister Howard and Margaret Connors.