Fairy Elizabeth (Baker) Cox McWilliams, 92, passed away due to natural causes on Monday, April 20, 2026, at her daughter’s residence in Havre. Cremation has taken place, and a memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 30, 2026, at Van Orsdel United Methodist Church with Pastor Carl Ellis officiating. Memorial services in Bozeman will be held at 1 p.m. on July 6, 2026, at Bozeman United Methodist Church. Fairy’s request was for memorial donations be made to the Flathead Lake United Methodist Camp and the Intermountain Home for Children. Holland & Bonine Funeral Home has been trusted with services and arrangements in Havre.
Fairy was born on January 20, 1934, in Glasgow, to Forrest and Ruth (Ewing) Baker. She was raised in Hinsdale, graduating from high school there. In 1953, she married Charles S. Cox in Hinsdale. Together they raised six children as they moved around the state for her husband’s career, living at various times in Helena, Bozeman, Butte, Great Falls, and Havre.
Fairy attended Northern Montana College later in life, graduating the same year as her youngest graduated high school, earning a degree in early childhood development. In addition to raising her six children, Fairy worked as an early childhood instructor, a HeadStart education coordinator, a trustee at Deaconess Health Services, and as a preschool teacher. In 2005, she married Hobart McWilliams in Whitefish, and the couple spent many years in Bozeman before returning to Havre.
She was a woman of faith … faith in God, family and friends. Fairy enjoyed beauty in nature and living spaces. She valued honesty, forgiveness, and a positive attitude, which she instilled in her children. In her spare time, Fairy enjoyed singing in the church choir, embroidery, playing piano, crocheting and reading.
She was preceded in death by her husbands, Charles Cox in 1991, and Hobart McWilliams in 2021; infant Wendy Sue in 1957; parents, Forrest and Ruth Baker; and brothers, Bob, Frank, Dick, Fred, and Dan Baker.
Fairy is survived by her children, Karen (Tom) Tuck, Kris (David) Shaw, Chuck (Brenda) Cox, Dave (Lisa) Cox, James Cox, and Rob (Erin) Cox; numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren; many extended family; and many friends.
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