Candace Marie Blackbird-Hubbard was a true daughter of Montana. Born and raised on the Ft. Belknap reservation to Dorothy Marie Azure and George Lincoln Blackbird, she was one of eight children. As a child, her family relocated to Mont Royal.
In early adulthood, she met and married Don Lott, and had two sons, Michael (Christina) Lee Lott and DJ (Beverly) Lott. In a heart wrenching decision, she moved with her two sons to Texas to be near Don’s family, but Montana and family always tugged at her heart. Eventually, with a promise from Grandma Dorothy to stop drinking if she came home, she packed up the boys, and with just enough money for bus fare, they took a bus from Texas back to Montana.
Finally, back in beautiful Montana, she thrived living with Grandma Dorothy who stayed true to her word and stopped drinking. Unfortunately, it was shortly after she moved home that Grandma Dorothy passed from an aneurysm.
As life moved forward, she met and married John Hubbard. They had Angie (Joe) Williams, the twins—Suzie (Shane) Bliler and Cindy Hubbard, and the most spoiled child in the world, Russell John Hubbard. Their life was not good, and when they divorced, it took her a minute to get on her feet. When she did, she became a whirlwind. Without a high school diploma, she attained her GED, then attended beauty school.
In Parkdale, the kids would line up outside our door to get haircuts from “Aunty Candace.” She never wanted us to go without, ever! She learned to sew so that she could make boxing trunks for DJ and Russell…and eventually the whole boxing club.
She handcrafted elegant dance regalia for Cindy, Suzie, and Angie. This led to her teaching classes on dress making at Longfellow Elementary where her children attended school. The family lived in abject poverty, but it did not often feel like it. The family went without a lot because raising 6 kids on your own without any financial support was overwhelming, but Candace made it work.
She was extremely proud of her yard and gardened religiously. She kicked this bad world’s ass, and the light of the land has diminished with her absence. We will remember her with the scent of sweet Montana rains. We will remember her with the first gentle snowfall and the warm lick of spring’s first light. We will never stop thinking about the softness of her tiny hands or the strength of her mighty heart.
To read the complete obituary and share condolences, click here to visit the Schnider Funeral Home website.
