Clare Jean (Stiffarm) Cobb, 76, passed away at Northern Montana Hospital due to COVID-19 on Saturday, December 26, 2020. In accordance with her wishes, cremation has taken place and no services are to be held. Holland & Bonine Funeral Home has been entrusted with arrangements. Please visit Clare's online memorial page and leave a message of condolence for her family at www.hollandbonine.com .

Clare was born on April 18, 1944, in Fort Belknap to Jim and Beatrice (Lame Bull) Stiffarm. She was raised in Hays, attending school at the St. Paul Mission school. In 1963, after graduating from high school, Clare attended two years of college at Northern Montana College, majoring in education. She taught pre-school for a few years, and then she met and married Fred L. Cobb in 1975 in Coeur d'Alene, Id. They had 6 children. The couple raised their children in Great Falls, Mt. and moved to Flagstaff, Az, in 1991, living there for 6 years. The family then moved to Kingman Az. to a warmer climate where Clare worked hard, caring for her home and family. The couple was married for 27 years until Fred's death in 2002. Clare then traveled between Montana and Arizona, visiting her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

In her younger years, Clare loved attending Pow Wows, cooking, and breaking wild horses with her father. Everyone loved Clare, or "Beaver'' or "Jeanie" as she was known by those close to her.  Her family was the most important thing in her life.  She did everything she could for them, and she loved spending time with them.  She also enjoyed learning new cooking, and greatly valued the life advice she received from her mother. Even as she got older, she used that advice to raise her six children and several grandchildren.  Clare was an amazing cook, famous for her frybread, pies, and much more.  Even better, she passed down her precious advice and cooking skills to her children and grandchildren who adored her and loved her.

Clare was a very thoughtful and kind-hearted woman, and her brothers and sisters were proud of and proud to call her their sibling.  It was so very hard to see her leave everyone, as she had such a beautiful and strong bond with them.  She loved laughing, talking and telling stories to them about her life and memories she has made throughout the years of her life. She loved all children.

Clare loved dolphins, and she always talked about her time when a dolphin kissed her.  Her favorite color was blue because it reminded her of the sky and heaven where her husband was.  She loved Fred so much that she talked to him even after he passed. Her smile was so contagious you couldn't help but smile and laugh with her, and just sitting and watching The Young and the Restless with her made her day. You could be doing nothing with her, and she would make it fun and memorable. Her distinct smell was always Jergens lotion, and whenever her family would smell that lotion, they would always think of her. She always had hand sanitizer with her. She didn't like to touch dirty money, saying "oh where's my sanitizer?  I touched dirty money." She also always had to have polar ice flavored Extra gum. Her huge purse always held anything you needed, be it fingernail clippers to tweezers to gum to a mirror, she always had it, even little tools. It's all these little things that you remember during a difficult time.

She was preceded in death by her husband Fred Cobb; sons, Theodore "Teddy" Bigleggins and Charlie Bigleggins; parents, Jim and Beatrice Stiffarm; sisters, Mary Jones and Mary Jane Stiffarm; and brothers, James F. "Jimmy" Stiffarm, Jr., and Charles Matthew Stiffarm.

Clare didn't leave the world empty.  She left behind her four children, Stuart "Jay" (Sabrina) Stiffarm of Missoula, Julie L. (Slade Teigen) Bigleggins of Toston,  Jennifer  (Darren) Lance and Beatrice Cobb, all of Flagstaff, AZ, whom she adored; 15 grandkids, including Leon and Heather Bigleggins, Charles, Michael, Nick, & Joe Henderson, & Tiffany Wells, all of whom she brought in and raised as her own, and Kylee Stiffarm, Myles Lance, Myren & Mason Lance (twins), Adriana Cobb, Alisa & Julian Valdez, and Dorian J. SunChild; 25 great-grandkids.

Her son Stuart Stiffarm wrote a poem for her called…

"IN LOVING MEMORY"

Whenever family gatherings, laugh, talk and eat.

Whenever babies are held stories are told and laughs are heard.

A mom's spirit lives on.

Therefore, you now have sorrow.

But I will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you .

Stay positive and that test negative.

I LOVE YOU MOM.

-Stuart "Jay" Stiffarm

She may be gone right now but she always told her family don't cry for her. She is above watching over them.  She is happy with her family, and she will patiently wait for the rest of them to join her with the rest of her family. Her family, friends, nieces, nephews, grandkids, great-grandkids, and siblings will let her live on with the stories they made with her forever till they reunite with her.