Jennifer Elaine Blachura, 59, of Stevensville passed away Sunday morning, July 10th, 2022, at home, surrounded by her loving family.
Jennifer was born on September 17th, 1962, in San Jose, CA to Harold (Hal) and Anita Graham. Jennifer’s Dad worked for Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E). They lived in San Jose, CA before settling down in Yuba City, CA.
After graduating from Yuba City High School in 1980, Jennifer joined the U.S. Army in December 1980. This adventure took her to Fort Sam Houston, TX for Basic Combat Training, Presidio of San Francisco, CA for Advanced Individual Training and then Tripler Army Hospital in Honolulu, HI as an Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist for over three years. She married Shawn Allison. She gave birth to Kenneth Allison, the first of her four boys, while stationed in Hawaii.
After leaving the Army in December 1984, Jennifer returned to California, joining the Army National Guard as a parttime Army Medic in an Aviation Battalion in Stockton, CA where she was promoted to Sergeant E-5. They welcomed the birth of their second son Andrew Allison in 1987.
After a time, Jennifer found herself as a single mother of two boys working two jobs to make ends meet. In 1992, Jennifer met Mike Blachura, a Captain and helicopter pilot. The two of them immediately “Hit it Off,” and after a short two-year romance were married in Lake Tahoe, CA on January 1st, 1995. They would add two more boys to the family; Michael Blachura II and Thomas Blachura.
In 2006, Jennifer and Mike decided that she, Michael II and Thomas should move to Montana so she could help her dad and brother take care of their mother, Anita, who was suffering from a rare Parkinson-type disease. Mike was still working in California when they would meetup on a short vacation together and Jennifer and the boys informed Mike that they “would never move back to California!” Very soon after Mike quit his job in California and moved to Stevensville to be with his family.
After her mother’s passing in 2007, Jennifer continued helping people by working in Home Health Care while raising their boys with Mike. Jennifer really loved being a mom.
Jennifer was first given the dreadful news that she had Stage 3 Breast Cancer in May 2012. She made the decision to have a double mastectomy, radiation and chemotherapy.
In June 2017, after experiencing some difficulty breathing, she was diagnosed with congestive heart failure. She was admitted to the hospital for treatment and extensive scans when it was determined her cancer was back with a vengeance. She now had Stage 4 Metastatic Breast Cancer that had spread to her bones. Although this was terrible news, she was determined to keep fighting. She wanted her legacy to be that of a loving Mother and Nana that her children and grandchildren would always remember. Her wonderful Doctors, Nurses and medical staff from Providence St. Patrick Hospital would provide her with the resources, tools, even medicinal weapons against her enemy: Cancer. She fought hard for years with an amazing inner strength but after 10 plus years of wearing her down it was finally time to rest.
Jennifer is survived by her husband and best friend of over 30 years, as well as her fulltime caregiver, Michael Blachura Sr of Stevensville; her sons, Kenneth Allison of Bigfork; Andrew Allison, Michael Blachura II, and Thomas Blachura all of Stevensville; her grandchildren: Macy Hall of Dickinson, ND; Dallon, Kenzie, Kolby and Abigail Allison all of Bigfork; Carter Blachura of Stevensville, MT; her brother Mark (Nancy) Graham of Folsom, CA; her sister Karen Graham of Stevensville, MT and her brother Colton (Deb) Graham of Florence, MT; and numerous loving Aunts, Uncles, Nieces and Nephews in California.
A memorial service will be held Wednesday, July 27th at 3pm at Whitesitt Funeral Home, 314 Church Street, Stevensville, MT 59870.
If you feel inclined to make a donation of any sort in Jennifer’s name, please make it to either your local Humane Society or to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Condolences and memories may be shared with the family, along with expanded obituary, at www.whitesittfuneralhome.com.