Charlotte Louise Haughian

Charlotte Louise Haughian of rural Cody passed away on June 18, 2021, at the Cedar Mountain Hospice following an illness of three months.

Charlotte was born May 17, 1952, in Miles City, Montana, to Donald Francis Holtz and Patricia Leigh Shunaker Holtz. She had an older sister, Donella, a younger brother, Clark, and a younger sister, Tammie. They were a close family. Besides working in the oil drilling industry which took the family to different locations in Montana, Wyoming and Utah, the family worked in ranching and bred Quarter horses in the Miles City area of Montana. Charlotte was enthusiastically involved with the horses and ranch work. She attended and graduated from St. Mary’s Catholic School in Montana in 1970, after which she attended a veterinary tech program in Thermopolis, Wyoming. 

Following her marriage to Gary Haughian, she lived and worked on his family ranch near Miles City. The couple had two children, Trent and Dawn. In the 1990s they moved to the Frannie area and raised sheep. Later they worked for an area rancher. The couple moved to the Cody area in 1996 and later divorced. Charlotte worked for and managed Park County Cleaners, an industrial company, for more than 20 years.

In 1995, when daughter Dawn wanted a dairy goat for 4-H, Charlotte was put in touch with Laura Evans and her daughter Ziggy Ginest. They all became friends and eventually set up an LLC company for the three women to breed and show Nubians and later added Nigerian Dwarfs under the Saada Dairy Goats herd name. They bred over 25 permanent champions, had many All-American goats, were invited three times to participate at the ADGA juried spotlight sale, won a number of national show classes, as well as becoming the Nubian breed’s national show premier breeder and exhibitor in 2009. They sold show animals to show herds in almost every state including Alaska, as well as Canada and sending several exports to Russia. Earlier in 2021, Saada was named one of the first “Herds of Distinction” when this award was established by the American Dairy Goat Association. Charlotte remained actively involved with her beloved goats until the last few days of her life.

A devout Roman Catholic woman, she participated in many of the church’s devotions, being especially dedicated to Adoration and the Holy Mass. She was a secular member of the Discalced Carmelite order, making her Definitive Promise on Sept. 14, 2014, as Louise of the Cross, OCDS. She was a member of the Immaculate Heart of Mary OCDS community.

Charlotte was preceded in death by her parents, sister Donella Holtz Wheatly and brother Clark Holtz. She is survived by son Trent Haughian, of Cody; daughter Dawn Haughian Sanchez, of Cowley; sister Tammie Holtz Neill, of Cody; three grandchildren, four nephews as well as uncles, aunts and cousins. A funeral Mass is scheduled for 2 p.m. June 25 at St. Barbara’s in Powell with burial in Powell and a reception to follow at the church hall.