WHITEFISH, Montana – Writer, editor, mother, grandmother, friend, nature lover and adventurer Shawn Lake, 76, died at her home in Whitefish on July 4, 2022. By her side at the end were her daughter and son, Tanner and Bridger Babcock, and her beloved companion Tess, her golden retriever-mix rescue.
It was the final chapter in her battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, which she faced with courage and grace, as was her way in life.
Shawn was born on May 16, 1946, in Des Moines, Iowa, to Marjorie and Jo Barry Lake, joining her brother, Robin Michael Lake, to complete the family. She grew up in Newton, Pennsylvania, and attended Bryant College in Providence, Rhode Island, and Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado.
She eventually moved to Montana, continuing her education at Montana State University and the University of Montana, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in English, with an emphasis in creative writing, from UM in 1990. She lived in Alberton and Missoula for years until she moved to Whitefish to be near Tanner.
Shawn’s early work life was eclectic and adventurous: She worked in logging and log-home building (“The log home building is a stretch,” she clarified. “All I did was chink the walls.”) and once had a shop where she made and repaired saddles and harnesses.
But words and books were her true passions. She worked at UM’s Mansfield Library for about six years, and for nearly 20 devoted herself to writing and editing. She produced news and feature stories for weekly newspapers in Mineral County and feature stories and essays in national publications. She spent nearly two decades as a healthcare writer, producing ghostwritten columns for hospital CEOs and hundreds of stories, pamphlets, information sheets and web stories about a myriad of medical topics.
And she authored three books of her own. Her first, in 2014, was “Love in the Time of Insomnia” (under the pen name Jo Barry, a nod to her dad, a television and mystery writer. In 2016 came “Car Trouble: True Stories from the Breakdown Lane,” tales from Montana tow-truck driver Ken and Tenley Field, and her latest, the 2021 mystery “Nine Mile Hill.” Her work also included some award-winning essays that she was particularly proud of.
In Missoula, she joined an improv group that performed at local theaters, demonstrating her quick wit and talent with words.
Her love of words was rivaled only by her love of the outdoors, and she found spiritual strength biking, kayaking, hiking and camping in the mountains, trails and backcountry of Montana and beyond. Daily walks with Tess on local trails were a non-negotiable part of her routine, and she reveled in the everyday beauty she experienced as a result. She often reminded family members to stop and appreciate the beauty of nature around us. She left her kids and grandkids scavenger hunts to follow after her passing, a treasured gift to each of us. She was an accomplished quilter and gifted her creations – many with themes from nature -- to friends and family.
Her final days were filled with her grandchildren and an amazing level of compassion from the oldest, Nova, who was so attentive and kind; Tanner’s partner Isaac, who supported Shawn and the family over the final months and days, accommodating any chore or request and always weaving in a joke to make Shawn laugh; and Shawn’s sister-in-law, Kathy, who was Shawn’s adventure partner and a major supporting presence throughout her diagnosis.
Her family and friends will remember her for her quiet strength, dignity, humor, intelligence, patience, sense of adventure, word skills, love of music and kindness.
She is preceded in death by her parents and her brother, Dr. Robin Lake.
She is survived by her daughter, Tanner Babcock, of Whitefish, and Tanner’s partner, Isaac Francis; her son, Bridger Babcock, of Alberton; her grandchildren Nova Babcock, Dia Babcock and Arrow Babcock; her son-in-spirit, Mackenzie Babcock; and her sister-in-law Kathy Crispell.
A memorial service will be planned for later in the year. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Shawn’s memory to Whitefish Legacy Partners at https://www.whitefishlegacy.org/ to support the trail system that she loved and used on a daily basis.
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