Eva Corrine (Crin) Hoffart, 92, was born in Bozeman, Montana on June 23, 1927 at Bozeman Deaconess Hospital and passed away in Bozeman on July 29, 2019. Crin was the real deal—a third generation Montanan—born and raised, lived and died under the Big Sky.
Crin’s parents, Fred and Rose Moger of Harrison, Montana, were homesteaders, dry land farmers and sheep ranchers on Willow Dale Ranch, between Harrison and Norris. She graduated from Harrison Public School in 1945 and Montana State University with a bachelor’s degree in business education in 1949.
She approached life as an adventure and led her life as if she was still on the ranch. You would think that gardening, canning 100’s of jars of Flathead cherries, peaches, and pears, making jam from local cherries, freezing tons of tomatoes and raising chickens was normal. She knew sheep, cattle, crops, farm equipment, tools, everybody in town, their relatives and the best places for wildflowers and mountain views throughout the Gallatin and Madison valleys.
At the drop of a hat, Crin always wanted it known that she was willing and able to attend a play, a concert, go to the museum, play bridge, cook an elaborate meal, attend a Bobcat game, or go for a ride and a picnic anywhere in Montana or travel the world.
Among many other things, Crin will be remembered for her kindness to others, her ability to make anybody laugh and her generosity of spirit that led her to support her family, her friends and the causes dearest to her heart: MSU, PEO, 4-H, Bozeman Public Schools, Museum of the Rockies, the Gallatin Historical Society, her two bridge clubs and the Empire Garden Club.
Crin’s most important legacy was recording her family’s history. She wrote about her memories of growing up on Willow Dale Ranch in the Madison Valley with stories about the sights, the smells and the small delights of ranch life. She wrote chapters on the String Town Mill, her adoring parents, her beloved relatives, their ventures across the prairie in wagon trains, life with sheep, turkeys, every piece of family furniture and the family plot at Sunset Hills Cemetery. Crin left an incredibly creative and complete legacy for her family.
Crin was preceded in death by her parents, Fred and Rose Moger, first husband, George Hossack and second husband, Leo Hoffart.
She is survived by her three children, daughter, Kim Martinson (husband, Kurt), son, Lance Hossack (his partner, Dominique Blokker), and daughter Hillary Brown. She is also survived by her five grandchildren, Kaja and Lars Martinson, Chelsea and Madison Smith, and Otter Brown; and great-granddaughters, Ezra and Finley Martinson Hawes. A connoisseur of friendships, Crin is further survived by the broad circle of friends and relatives who continue to cherish fond memories of their times with her.
A celebration of Crin’s life is scheduled at 11:00 A.M., Saturday, September 14, 2019 at Sunset Hills Cemetery, Bozeman. A light lunch will be served afterward at the Lindley Park Pavilion.
There is a proverb that says no one is truly gone as long as they are remembered. As such, the family requests that memorials be directed in Crin’s name to the Tinsley House (Living History Farm, Museum of the Rockies, c/o Tinsley House, 600 W. Kagy Blvd., Bozeman, MT 59717).
Arrangements are in the care of Dokken-Nelson Funeral Service.
