Billie Anderson, 74

Billie Anderson, 74, of Bigfork passed away on March 16, 2025, at Clark Fork Valley Hospital, following battles with pneumonia, and an even longer battle with Alzheimer’s. Her family was with her at her side.

A casual celebration of life will be held at The Swan River Hall in Bigfork on May 10, from 11-4 for family and friends. Please come and go as you can. In Lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to The Bigfork Summer Playhouse scholarship fund in Billie’s name.  

Billie was born on April 20, 1950, to Rosemary and David "Bill" Davidson in Great Falls. At an early age they moved to Kalispell, where she attended grade school, before finally moving to Bigfork where she would complete high school.

In high school she met the love of her life, Bruce Anderson. They were married after graduation at The Lutheran Church in Bigfork. They would soon move to Missoula, where they lived in married student housing at the University of Montana, while Bruce went to school.  

The two of them enjoyed outdoor activities like hiking and camping. They tried out living in Alaska for a short time, however decided it was too far away and returned home to Bigfork and family.  

They built a home together in Peaceful Acres and would have three children, Erika, Fletcher, and Andrea "Andi."  

When their kids were young, all under the age of 4, Billie and the kids moved back to Missoula so that she could go back to school at the U of M, and Bruce could continue working at his insurance company (Westmont Agency) and manage properties they owned in Bigfork. They commuted back and forth between Missoula and Bigfork on weekends to see each other. Tragically in 1983 Bruce was killed in a motor vehicle accident.  

Billie and the kids moved back to Bigfork afterwards to be near Bruces’s family who she was very close with, and to have support while raising her kids.  

Over the years Billie and her sister-in-law, Barbie Grinde would own and operate several small businesses in Bigfork. She and Barbie started The Cottage, a gift shop that was originally located behind The Bigfork Summer Playhouse.  

They became interested in basket weaving and made and sold hundreds of baskets during those years. They even taught basket-making classes.  

For a while, on the side, they also had a food catering business together. Eventually, however, it became too busy to manage both businesses.

The Cottage added espresso, homemade baked goods and other treats, becoming the first espresso/coffee shop in Bigfork. They moved the shop uptown into a larger location on Electric Avenue and renamed to The Cottage and Espresso Station, eventually adding ice cream. The Cottage and Espresso Station would move locations a couple more times before she eventually closed the business after her kids had graduated high school.   

She would continue working in retail for several years afterwards at Merry Gems, a children’s clothing store in Bigfork. 

Billie was exceptionally creative with many artistic talents including photography (she was always behind a camera), fabric design, painting, candle making, floorcloths, and enjoyed decorating and redecorating her homes every season and holiday. She always had an active Etsy shop, marketing her creations.

She was also a consummate cook, baker, and had started her own cookbook. 

Billie absolutely loved music, which was always playing at home, in her car, at work. She always said she loved all music "except country." Favorites included Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Elton John, Paul Simon, Dire Straits, Fleetwood Mac, and Tom Petty… it would be impossible to list all of her favorites. She was also quite the dancer! 

Billie was a strong woman and an amazing mother despite the challenges she faced throughout her life. She juggled work as a small business owner and raised her three kids as a single mother, managing all of her kids’ various sports and other activities including the necessary travel etc. She was always supportive of her kids’ endeavors, and always emphasized she wanted her kids to be smart, to have fun, to be happy in life, and find careers they enjoyed first and foremost. She also welcomed her kids’ friends throughout the years, giving them her love and support as well.

When her daughter, Erika and son in law, Matt started their own family, Billie moved to Colorado to live in their home and help care for her first grandson, Nikolas, for nearly the first year of his life while Erika and Matt returned to work. She did the same four years later when her second grandson, William was born. 

About 10 years ago Billie started experiencing symptoms of dementia and was eventually diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. She took this devastating diagnosis in stride, and early on would repeatedly remind us "sometimes I forget I have Alzheimer’s."

Her kids and family supported her in her home for as long as possible before she moved to Clark Fork Valley long term care center in Plains in 2022, where she would have 24/7 care that she needed. The nursing team there would become her extended family. Over the last few years, she continued to experience the inevitable decline associated with Alzheimer’s, and on March 16, 2025, she succumbed to pneumonia at Clark Fork Valley Hospital. Her kids were at her side. Her favorite music was playing.  

Billie was preceded in death by her parents, Rosemary and Bill Davidson; her husband, Bruce Anderson; her mother-in-law, June Anderson; father-in-law, Andy Anderson; and her granddaughter, Natalie Wright.  

She is survived by Erika and Matt Wright; Fletcher and Stephanie Anderson; and Andi Anderson and Blake Benveniste. Her grandsons, Nikolas and William Wright. Her brothers and sisters-in-law, Barbie and Keith Grinde; Bart and Pam Anderson; Mike and Bobbi Wolstein; and Dudley and Joyce Anderson. As well as numerous nieces and nephews, and their children as well.