Twyla was a wonderful woman that was loved, is missed, and will always be cherished. Our “Nana,” as she liked to be called by her grandchildren, “Honey,” as she was called by Tawny when she was little, was an amazing wife, mom, daughter, and a baker of buns like no other could be.

Twyla’s story starts on April 14, 1952, the oldest child to Harvey and Josephine Chell. Twyla was born in Webster, S. D. When Twyla was still little Harvey and Jo moved their small family to Froid, where Twyla would spend her childhood, grow up, make many lifelong friends, and go to school. She was very proud to be a Froid Cardinal and would always point them out when she was lucky enough to see one. Froid is where she would meet the love of her life, Samuel Lee Picard of Bainville. Twyla and “Sammy” had a whirlwind romance and were married in the Lutheran church in Froid on Aug. 16, 1969. Twyla and Sam spent many hardworking years on the family farm north of Bainville and east of Froid.

Twyla was renowned for her cooking and baking skills. Twyla and Sam never had any trouble finding help on the farm. Everyone always knew they would have plenty of homemade delicious food to eat while they were there to work. Shay remembers many many pans of buns coming out of the funny looking oven that Twyla baked with in her kitchen, and always having a ham and cheese sandwich on one of those buns to eat when he arrived from that long bus ride home from school. Twyla could also get out and work the cattle and those damn sheep and drive truck with best of them. She worked that farm very hard.

In 1983, after their daughter Tawny Jo was born, Twyla and Sam moved their family to the “big city” of Billings. Twyla and Sam bought Al’s Bootery and the Redwing shoe store.

They had many successful years selling western and work boots to the people of Billings and the surrounding area. Twyla was pretty famous for her knee high snake skin boots. Twyla and Sam also started a successful residential construction company soon after moving to Billings that is still going strong today. Everyone knew that when Twyla showed up on the job site they had better have it cleaned up and better have things done right. If you were going to do it halfassed you may as well not do it at all.

Twyla loved to look at and be in the mountains of Montana. Twyla and her family spent many days up and around Cooke City, Mont. Twyla and Sam would always point out Pilot Index when they were on the way up there and they had “their meadow” where they had many happy times together. If there was anywhere Twyla loved to be with her family it was in the mountains.

Twyla’s grand children were her heart and joy. There’s no denying that, her grand babies as she called them, were the people that she loved the most. Time spent at Nana’s house was very special for her grand babies, and parents were discouraged from hanging out too long.