Marie Bellas

1937 - 2025

Marie Bellas, 87, was born on September 5, 1937 and went to be with the Lord on the evening of August 22, 2025. Her daughter, Julie and her husband, Michael Maddux were present by her bedside.
The majority of Marie's life was spent in the Owens Valley, especially in the Lone Pine area. Marie attended Lo-Inyo School and Lone Pine High School, where she ran in Track & Field and earned the nickname, "Breezy." One day as Marie was on the track field, she quickly ran past a group of boys, and they asked each other "did you feel that breeze?," her brother Leonard said. This was how Marie gained her nickname "breezy" in high school.
In 1957, after graduating from high school, Marie moved to the Southern California area, and eventually her first daughter, Julie was born in 1959. Shortly after, her second daughter, Cathy was born in 1960; followed by her son, Leo in 1962. As a single mother living in Highland Park, Marie attended cosmetology school where she became a licensed barber and hairdresser to support her 3 children – she was a mother that made sure her children always had food on the table, and emphasized hard work to support themselves as adults. Marie worked various jobs before she retired, such as working with a mobile kitchen unit that prepared and served food to firefighters in a fire camp; she also worked with juvenile girls in a group home in Independence; and was also a housekeeper in several motels in Lone Pine.
While Marie lived in the Southern California area, she would attend and dance in powwows. Marie often loved beading and took on various beading projects such as barrettes, moccasins, chokers, earrings, necklaces, men's bolo ties, and collars for dresses worn in pow wows. When she moved back to the Owens Valley, Marie and her sister, Ethel wore their regalia and participated in the local California Indian Day Parade and the Lone Pine Film Festival. From a very young age, Marie was also fluent in the Shoshone language.
At the time of Marie's birth, she was born prematurely and was said to have fit in a shoebox. Marie had a kind personality, as she was someone who treated everyone she met with kindness and was well-liked in school – others remembered her as being "sweet and nice." Her former classmates called her "breezy," and her family called her "grandma" or "mom," and those she knew in the Owens Valley, would often say "Hi, Marie!"
In her later years, she developed various hobbies, such as tending her garden, canning homemade jam, baking home goods, and traveling to various places, such as Niagara Falls, Canada; New York City; Maui, Hawaii; Washington, D.C.; Colorado Springs, and Catalina Island – she would often send home or bring back souvenirs to her family members.
Marie is survived by her brother, Leonard, and his wife Alice; her oldest daughter, Julie and her husband, Mike Maddux (son-in-law); daughter, Cathy and her husband, David Rodriguez (son-in-law); and son, Leo Espinosa. Her granddaughters, Melissa and Lisa Maddux, and Kristen.
Marie is preceded in death by her parents, Ned and Molly Bellas; her brothers Charlie, Ned Jr., Kenny; and her sisters, Ethel and Lucille. Marie Bellas (Paiute and Shoshone) was a member of the Lone Pine Paiute-Shoshone Reservation, where she also lived and resided for the majority of her life.
A public viewing for Marie Bellas will be held on Friday, September 26, 2025 from 5:00 p.m-8:00 p.m. at the Mt. Whitney Funeral Home in Lone Pine. Funeral services will be held on Saturday September 27, 2025 starting at 10 a.m. at the Mt. Whitney Cemetery in Lone Pine. A potluck reception will be held at the Lone Pine Paiute Shoshone Gymnasium.
Mt. Whitney Funeral Home directing.