Margaret M. Bailey

Margaret M. Bailey
On Wednesday, April 15, as northern lights lit up the sky, Margaret "Greta" M. Bailey passed peacefully in her sleep at the Sweet Memorial Nursing Home in Chinook.
As per her wishes, arrangements have been made with Edwards Funeral Home of Chinook to send Greta to her final resting place in Las Vegas, Nevada. Catholic services will be held at 12:00 pm on Friday, April 24, 2015 at St. Thomas More Catholic Church, 130 North Pecos Road, Henderson, NV 89014.
Greta was born January 31, 1931, in Havre, Montana, to Irene and Otto H. Moog and was raised in the farming community of Inverness, Montana, with five siblings: Alice, Otto (Bud), Bob, Vern and Len. She was instilled with a strong work ethic and fierce determination. Upon high school graduation she received a bachelor's degree in nursing at Sacred Heart in Havre, Montana. Greta then lived in Anaconda, Montana, where she was married and later divorced. With the help of her family, she returned to work as a registered nurse at Sacred Heart while she raised four young children: Karen, Colleen, Sid, and Mary Beth.
When the hospital closed, Greta took a nursing position at Fort Belknap in 1968. She enjoyed her special work friends and bowling friends in the Harlem area until 1977. As her children started to leave home, Greta chose to move to El Centro, California, where her oldest daughter resided. Setting her sights on Las Vegas, she moved there within a couple years and continued to work at Desert Springs Hospital until 1992.
Upon her retirement Greta and her children decided to sell her house and enjoy the opportunity to share their mom (and now grandmother) by having her take up residence with each of them for different parts of the year. Although she always considered her home to be in Las Vegas with her eldest daughter, Karen, Greta summered in Montana with Colleen and later Sid, and vacationed in San Diego with Mary Beth. As her kids moved around the country, she delighted in the luxury of being with all of them as an occasion arose. Seven grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren gave her many reasons to go and "enjoy her babies."
Countless family vacations and visits filled up her last years, and Greta was always first at the door if you were going to the grocery store or across the country. She enjoyed reading, crossword puzzles and playing games (especially cards), but her greatest joy was any time people got together to share stories and laugh raucously. She believed laughter was the best medicine for everything.
Greta returned to Montana for her last fourteen months and became a member of the "family" at the Sweet Home in Chinook. She reverted to her nursing instincts and often "worked" a shift with the wonderful staff and residents who understood her constant need to care for others.
It goes without saying that she brought joy to all those who knew her and she will be dearly missed by her family and friends. She is survived by her brothers: Robert (Una) Moog, Inverness; Len (Madeline) Moog, Littleton, CO; and sister-in-law Bev Moog, Inverness. Her children: Karen (Tom Prato), Las Vegas; Colleen (Denny) Overcast, Chinook; Sid (Renee) Bailey, Phoenix; and Mary Catania, San Diego. Her grandchildren: Krisinda, Shauna, Cassidy, Melanie, Amber, Courtney, and Chase. Her great-grandchildren: Jazzmyn, Kaden, Hope, Carsyn, Bryson, Cruz, and Camryn, who was born on Greta's birthday this year.
Memorials may be made to the Sweet Memorial Nursing Home, P.O. Box 1149, in Chinook, MT 59523.


Arrangements under the direction of Palm Eastern Mortuary, Las Vegas, NV.