Elane M. Burkhalter

Elane Burkhalter was born June 25, 1940, to Fred and Myrtle Bredemeier in Pawnee County, Nebraska.  She passed away on July 15, 2023.

Elane attended a one-room school for two years, until the building burned down; then she attended elementary school in DuBois and later Pawnee City, Nebraska, where she graduated in May, 1957.  She completed the Secretarial Course at Lincoln School of Commerce in late winter of 1958.  Always proficient in typing and office skills, she worked primarily as a secretary, most recently as a legal secretary at Crowell and Chapin, and then for Bishop and Yaap.  Elane was proud to be one of the first legal secretaries in Wyoming to earn the designation of Professional Legal Secretary.  She retired from working full time in December, 2007, to care for her husband who had been diagnosed with cancer.

Elane met Dennis Clifton while working in Lincoln, and they were married in October, 1958.  They were parents of two sons, Daniel and James.  They divorced in 1974, and in April, 1976, Elane and Donald Burkhalter were married, making their home in Casper, Wyoming.

Elane was a member of First Christian Church, an active participant at the Central Wyoming Senior Center, several sewing and knitting groups, and she and Don were members of the Black Sheep Square Dance Club.  She enjoyed big-game hunting and was proud of her success with bighorn sheep and moose hunting.  She also enjoyed needlework and sewing, and while her children were in elementary school, she made custom draperies.  She enjoyed time spent with family, card games, puzzles, reading, community and College Theaters, and good music.

Surviving Elane are her sons, Daniel Clifton (Nila) of Casper, and James Clifton (Pamela) of Omaha, Nebraska.  A step-daughter, Dana Landry (Jeff) in California.  Also, two granddaughters, Brittany Venteicher (Dylan), and Kelsey Clifton, a great grandson, Milo James Venteicher, two step-grandsons, and three step-great-grandchildren.  Also surviving are her sister, Alene Davis of Longview, Texas, brother, Edgar (Carolyn) Bredemeier of Stella, Nebraska, sister-in-law, Jan Bredemeier of DuBois, Nebraska, as well as 10 nephews and nieces and their families.  She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband, Don, her brother, Arden Bredemeier, and her brother-in-law, Paul Davis.  She is also survived by many dear friends, too numerous and dear to name.

A memorial service, celebration of life, will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Mon. July 31, 2023 at First Christian Church, 520 CY Avenue, Casper, Wyoming  In lieu of flowers, Elane prefers charitable donations to Central Wyoming Senior Services, the Rocky Mountain Foundation for Cancer Care, First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), or Central Wyoming Hospice and Transitions, all in Casper, Wyoming.

We wish to thank all of Elane's medical team, the doctors, nurses, and staff, especially those at Rocky Mountain Oncology.

A special thanks to all of the wonderful people at the Central Wyoming Hospice & Transitions.