Obituary: Daniel “Dan” Louis Smith

Daniel "Dan" Louis Smith

October 10, 1960 - September 20, 2024

Daniel "Dan" Louis Smith passed away Friday, September 20, 2024 at the age of 63. Dan was born in Missoula, Montana on October 10, 1960 to Robert and Rose Smith. He spent most of his childhood enamored with the outdoors, searching for fish, deer, and elk, taking up most of his free time when not interrupted by school.

Once he graduated from Hellgate High School, he went to work on the railroad, following in his father's footsteps and traveling all across Montana. Not wanting to be far from his family, he settled back in Missoula, working at Larchmont Golf Course in the summer and selling Christmas trees in the winter.

He found more than a job he loved at Larchmont; he found his future wife, Bev, too. After finally getting the courage to ask her out, it became apparent that he had found something he loved more than work; soon came Ben, Jake, and Isaac, and with that, a loving family.

With three boys watching his every move, he showed them a hard work ethic, a love for all animals, and a love for the outdoors, packing the boys on his back into the woods every chance he could. Even with so little free time, he picked up many more talents and skills, from playing music to building knives and painting to learning about as many things that peaked his interest.

After a long career at Larchmont, he retired and moved to Arizona with Bev and Isaac to escape the cold weather and explore a different type of nature with his co-pilot, Norris. There he could sit in the warm sun and receive phone calls from his two oldest boys calling to tell of their wild adventures in the same woods he had spent many of his years.

Dan is preceded in death by his parents, Robert and Rose, and his brothers Bill and Rusty.

Dan is survived by his wife, Bev, son Ben and daughter-in-law Cortni, sons Jake and Isaac, his sister Kate and her husband Scott, his brother Ed and his wife Cindy, the new light of his life, his granddaughter Vada, as well as many beloved nieces and nephews and close friends, all knowing that the world lost a great husband, father, brother, uncle, and friend.

Services will be held Friday, October 11, 2024 at St. Anthony's Parish at 12:30pm, a burial service at St. Mary's Cemetery at 2:00pm, with a reception to follow at Ruby's Cafe.