Barbara Rae Ormiston

HAMILTON - Barbara Rae Ormiston, 89, passed away November 28, 2025, at West Hills Assisted Living under the care of Big Sky Home Hospice. She was born July 12, 1936, in Blue Island, IL, to Henry and Arlyle Bingham. Barb grew up in Mundelein, IL, and graduated from Libertyville High School in 1953. She married Ralph Rouse, also from Mundelein, in 1955 and moved to Montana. They had 3 sons, Steven, Scott and Kevin, and lived in Sheridan, Mt. When Ralph passed away in March,1962 in a accident, Barbara chose to stay in Montana with her sons. Barbara met John Ormiston in 1968, and they married on Sept 12, 1969, the beginning of a 56-year journey through life. They lived in Butte for 5 years before moving to Hamilton in August 1974 to the house they've owned for 51 years.

The house just west of Hamilton had a beautiful view of the Sapphire Mountains to the east and Canyon Peak to the west. Barb truly loved what became over 50 years a family sanctuary. Her grandchildren spent holidays and spring breaks and her great grandchildren came to know the property with its gardens, rustic wildlife landscapes and birdfeeders as a place free to roam and discover.

An animal lover at heart the family was surrounded by pet dogs and always immersed in Barb’s love of cats. She soon became committed to animal welfare and became engaged in the local effort to replace the animal shelter run by the Bitter Root Humane Association when the land was allocated for building the city sewage treatment plant in 1982. The new Board spent three years gathering funding for a new building east of the Fairgrounds in Hamilton. They performed many fundraising efforts, from bake sales to rummage sales and begging for donations. The efforts culminated in 1985 with building a suitable shelter to house stray and homeless animals of numerous species. Barb served as a Board member, Secretary and Vice President of the Board before becoming President in 1993. She retired in 2003 after 20+ years of faithful service.

Barb was an active member of the United Methodist American Baptist Church and sang in the choir for many years. Barb and family enjoyed the vast outdoors of the Mountain West. We backpacked to numerous mountain lakes and visited National Parks in Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota and Canada. We “cruised” in the “Great Pumpkin”; an orange retired school bus converted to a self-contained motor home. One of our best adventures involved a trip to Glacier National Park where we saw scores of Bald Eagles feeding on kokanee salmon in MacDonald Creek. Later that day we drove north along the North Fork of the Flathead River to Kintla Lake at the very northwest corner of the Park. Overnight a heavy wet snow fall nearly left us snowbound. We were very likely the last party to camp there in 1979.

We can never forget the night elk bugled almost in our backpack tent in the upper Skalkaho Basin/Sapphire Game Preserve.

Barb is survived by her husband John Ormiston, brother Larry and wife Carol Bingham in Sycamore, IL, our sons Scott and wife Dara Rouse in Missoula, and Kevin and wife Tracy Rouse in Coeur d’ Alene, ID. Son Steven passed away in 2019. Barb is also survived by seven grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren.

Barb specified no services; her ashes will be scattered by family and friends in Spring 2026 where our son’s ashes were scattered.

The family suggests memorials to Safe Haven Llama and Alpaca Sanctuary, Wolf Haven International, Bitter Root Land Trust or a charity of the donor’s choice.