Dorene Vallee

Dorene Dupuis Vallee
Aug. 2, 1936 – March 3, 2025

SAINT IGNATIUS, Mont. – Dorene Ruth Dupuis Vallee, 88, passed away peacefully at home on the evening of March 3, 2025.

Dorene was born on August 2, 1936, in Saint Ignatius to Julia Ruth Courville and Floyd Augustine Dupuis. From a young age, she knew she wanted to be a nurse. After graduating from Polson High School in 1954, she attended the St. Patrick’s School of Nursing in Missoula from 1954-57. She went on to become one of the first Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) members to earn a registered nurse license in 1957.

Born in an era when Native women faced significant barriers, Dorene emerged as a trailblazer who carved a path that spanned over five decades of service in the public and private sector and serving tribal and Alaskan Native communities across Montana, California, and Alaska.

From being the first Head Start nurse in the 1960s to becoming the first tribal member certified as a community health nurse in 1978, Dorene worked tirelessly across diverse healthcare settings and often faced challenges being one of the only Native women in healthcare.

Dorene married Thomas “Bearhead” Swaney in 1958, and together they raised four children: Kim, Patty, Ruth, and Bill. No matter where her husband found work, Dorene adapted and found work as a nurse. Dorene moved between hospitals, clinics, and schools, always putting her patients first. Her work took her from the Flathead and Crow reservations in Montana to a larger hospital in California and to the remote villages of Alaska, where she provided critical healthcare services to Native communities.

Dorene wrote, “I worked in every hospital on the reservation-Polson, Ronan, St. Ignatius, and Hot Springs. I worked at Crow Agency IHS, moved to California and worked in a 500 bed hospital at Riverside, CA. I spent a few years working in Alaska for Native corporations in Kotzebue and Nome, AK. I also was a Public Health Nurse for the state of Alaska in Bethel and was the first Hepatitis B nurse consultant in Anchorage. I finished my time in AK in May 2001.”

As things sometimes happen with marriages, she divorced from Bearhead in 1979. She married John Baptiste Vallee in 1980 and they shared 40 years of marriage until his passing in 2020.

Her husband John supported her adventurous spirit, together navigating careers that took them to multiple places and opportunities. Both decided to find jobs in Alaska for the higher pay and retirement benefits. She worked in Anchorage, Bethel, Kotzebue, and Nome, Alaska where she established friendships and met many colleagues along the way.

She and her husband saved up enough money to retire at their Mission Dam homesite and to buy their retirement home with the money they saved. After moving back from Alaska for good and retiring for the first time in 2001, Dorene decided she wasn’t quite ready to retire and continued to work well into her 70s.

Dorene continued working at Mission Tribal Health serving as a community health nurse embodying the very spirit of care she championed her entire life until she retired in 2011 at the age of 75. Her journey wasn't just about medical treatment, but about healing communities, breaking barriers, staying busy, connecting with others, and showing generations of Native women that they could pursue their dreams against all odds.

In 2012, she was honored as the special guest speaker at the Salish Kootenai College nursing pinning ceremony when her granddaughter, Catherine, received her associates degree in nursing. Catherine followed in Dorene’s footsteps to become a registered nurse. Dorene was so proud of her granddaughter and shared stories with Catherine about what it was like when nurses were required to wear the white hats, dresses, and shoes. Dorene observed the devastating impacts of polio, measles, mumps, and other diseases that were rampant before vaccines were available. She also witnessed all of the progress made in healthcare and didn’t hesitate to help others long after she retired.

But Dorene was more than a nurse. Having four children in five years, she was a mother who balanced her professional calling with remarkable family dedication ensuring dinner was on the table at 6 PM sharp and never missed her children's games and important moments.

A devoted mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, Dorene found joy in family gatherings, where she played the piano and sang. She loved to travel with her husband, pets, and family to powwows, casinos, and sporting events. Dorene had a deep love for fishing, camping, and gardening. The fruit trees and berry bushes she planted were enjoyed by her grandchildren and will continue to bring joy for years to come. With a bit of luck on her side, she even hit a few jackpots over the years.

Dorene was passionate about sports, especially football and basketball. She loved going to Griz football games and was often seen cheering on her grandchildren and great-grandchildren at powwows and games She loved being out in the community, receiving hugs, clapping for every contest song at powwows, and celebrating every made basket, no matter the team. One of her last outings in January was watching her twin grandsons play basketball at Two Eagle River School.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Julia and Floyd; husband, John Vallee; brothers, Donald “Donny”,  Loren “Russell,” Kenneth, and infant brother Richard Dupuis; eldest grandson, Thomas Lyles; and her children’s father, Bearhead Swaney.

Dorene is survived by her children, Kim Swaney, Patty (Willie) Stevens, Ruth Swaney, and Bill Swaney; canine companion Molly; grandchildren, Joanna Mackey, Joseph Stevens, Marianne and Catherine Addison, Jamie Dickson, Raymond (Jennifer) Adams, and Lily Swaney; great-grandchildren Jason and Erica Baldwin, Brian Lyles, Talayna and Talus Endfield, Talon, Thomas, and Tahnee Addison, Mataya Oakland, Kobe, Quinn, and Kash Stevens, Jodessa and Jasper McGreevery, Jailah and Messiah Adams, James Caye, and Kaylaiha Dubois; brothers Darry (Rita), Forest “Buzz”, Mike (Verna), and Greg (Abby) Dupuis; sister Peggy (Rod) VanNess, as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

A wake at the family home at Mission Dam Homesites began on March 3. Services will continue on March 6, with a closing at Foster’s Funeral Home at 10 a.m., followed by the funeral service at 11 a.m. at Saint Ignatius Catholic Church. All are welcome to share a meal with the family in the church basement following the funeral.  In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Salish Kootenai College nursing student scholarships in Dorene’s honor.

The family of Dorene appreciates all of the stories, kind words, and love shown during their time of grief.

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