Julia G. Horvath

Julia G. Horvath passed away peacefully on Wednesday, February 7, 2024, at The Springs in Missoula. She was 89 years old.

 

Julia was born to John and Julia Spiess on March 14, 1934, in Srbobran, Yugoslavia (formerly Saint Thomas, Hungary). She was the youngest of three siblings. During the closing years of WWII, her family became refugees as they moved away from an advancing war-front in Eastern Europe. Along with her parents and sister Mary, she eventually immigrated to the United States in 1952. The family was sponsored by a church in Sioux Falls, South Dakota where they lived for a time prior to moving to Trenton, New Jersey where there was a large Hungarian community. In 1957, she met the love of her life, Joe, who had recently emigrated from Hungary. They were married November 23, 1957. Together they had two children George and Joe.

 

Julia was a busy homemaker raising two active boys. The family moved to Denver, Colorado in 1962, after her husband finished graduate school. In 1965, they moved to Kansas City, Kansas, followed by a subsequent move to Atlanta, Georgia in 1968. While in Atlanta, the family took extended road trip vacations traveling cross country throughout the West. One of those vacations took them through western Montana where they fell in love with the Bitterroot Valley area. In 1974, Julia and her family moved to Missoula, Montana.

 

Julia loved to cook Hungarian recipes and bake her own bread. She was an avid gardener who loved to grow a wide variety of vegetables and berries from the time the snow melted until the fall days of harvest. She was also a talented artist who sketched and painted still lifes and landscapes. She was a devoted wife, mother, and homemaker. She enjoyed spending time with her family and grandchildren. She had a strong Christian faith and over the years attended Light of the Valley church in Stevensville, and Christian Life Center, in Missoula.

 

Julia was preceded in death by parents John and Julia, siblings Stephen and Mary, and her husband Joe. She is survived by sons George (Kim) and Joe (Konni); grandchildren Matthew (Tegan), Hannah (Jacob), Naomi (Jordan), Sarah (Brendan), Gabriella, Julianna, David, and Josiah; and great-grandchildren William, Grace, Gabriel, Jaina, Ellanora, and Allana.

 

The family would like to thank the staff at The Springs for the quality care and support they provided Julia over the past three years.

 

A memorial service will be planned for later this year.