Obituary for Vina Marie (Varady) Walker

If a tree falls in the forest, would anybody hear it? On August 4th in the late afternoon, a mighty oak fell and shook our family to its core.

Vina Marie Walker was born on July 28, 1944, in Deer Lodge, MT to Marie (Perry) Hanley and began her new journey walking with God on August 4, 2026.

Vina attended grade school at Washington School in Butte, graduated from Butte High School in 1962, and graduated from the University of Montana in Missoula in 1997 with double degrees in Social Work and Psychology.

In her earlier years, she was a hairdresser and owned the Institute of Cosmetology School, Vina's Busy Brush, and Visible Changes.  She was a social worker and administrator at Evergreen Nursing Home and then went on to become a Regional Manager for Excel Management. She then worked for the Butte School District as a bus monitor for several years along with being the financial secretary for the Amalgamated Transit Union.

Vina was strong, loving, and kind. She loved raising children—not only her own, but any of her siblings, grandchildren, or great-grandchildren. "Nana" was her favorite identity, and she wore it with joy. Whatever family member needed their Nana they always found their way to her.

Like the mighty oak she was compared to, Vina stood tall through the seasons, offering strength, warmth, and quiet resilience to everyone who knew her.

Vina was one of eight children and was preceded in death by her brother Julius "Dude" & Jean Varady, and Louis "Skip", her mother Marie Hanley and her grandparents Louis and Florence Perry and Harold and Muriel Walker. Vina's surviving sisters Virginia, Kathy (Bill) Casey, Sharon, and her brothers Rick (Michelle) Varady, Bill (Ann) Varady.

Vina is survived by her loving husband of 50 years and most trusted sidekick, Bud Walker; her three children, Terri Boyer, Marty (Karin) Walker, and Michael (Maureen) Ross; her grandchildren, Toshia (Travis) Munter, Tristan (Kyle) Svejkovsky, Gage Boyer, Jared (Madison) Walker, Karsen Walker, Brian (Monica) Ross, and Anthony Ross; her great-grandchildren, Grayson and Finley Cetraro, Zander, Sawyer, Kessler, Colter & Sutter Svejkovsky, Charlotte Walker, Riley and Mazie Ross.  She is also survived by her sister-in-law and brother-in-law Jack and Kathy Ghenie and their family and her four furry best friends, Thor, Ziggy, Rocco, and Dozer.

She will be remembered for the deep roots of love and devotion to her family she leaves behind, and for the proud example of perseverance and care she set for everyone.

Vina is now at peace, walking with God.

Friends may call on Tuesday at 10 a.m. at Duggan Dolan Mortuary Chapel, followed by a funeral service at 11 a.m. with a reception following the service at the Butte Depot. Interment will take place at a later date. Memorials are suggested to the Butte Spay & Neuter Task Force P.O. Box 544, Butte, MT 59703 or the charity of the donor's choice.