Dean Ray Larson

Dean was born 27 June 1936 to Louise & Roy Larson.  He & his older brother Chuck were raised on their farm near Fowler, IN.  After graduating from Benton Central High School Dean joined the United States Army and attended engineering school, becoming an equipment mechanic and an expert at using the sub-machine gun.  He was sent to Germany where he lost his left leg due to a motorcycle accident.  Dean was declared permanently disabled and discharged from the Army.  He returned to Indiana and while recuperating, met & married Barbara Sparks.  The newlyweds moved to Montana - for the hunting & fishing - and started their family.

In 1967 Dean purchased a small home with 5 acres (of mostly trees) outside Fairfield, MT.  He would commute to Great Falls for work as a linotype operator for the Great Falls Tribune and then as a Real Estate Agent.  However, Dean’s 1st love was the opportunity to hunt & fish, going so far as to purchase his very own pond not far from home. Dean also taught his kids how to tie flies, cast a fly rod & clean a fish, inspiring a love & respect for nature.

In 1978 the family moved to Bozeman when the oldest daughter was accepted at Montana State University (Go Cats!).  Dean continued in Real Estate, traveling between Bozeman and Helena until he determined he needed to devote more time to fishing.  Dean traveled extensively in pursuit of the ultimate fishing experience, even going so far away as Canada, England & New Zealand!

Dean’s wife Barb passed away on Thanksgiving 1997.  With all the kids now grown & gone too, he might have been alone if not for the faithful “Coffee Crew” who would meet every morning for coffee & conversation (fish tales?).  One such meeting place was Bozeman’s Main Street McDonald’s, where Dean landed the best catch of his life - Margaret Wilber Larson.  They married on January 23rd, 1999, in Reno, NV.

Whenever Margaret could pull Dean away from fishing, you could find him in Central Montana where he’d spend time with many of Margaret’s siblings, children, grandchildren and many close family friends. Most holidays, family birthdays and other special events were spent in Central Montana with lots of time around the family dinner table followed by cards and board games.

Dean was a very patient and generous man. He welcomed many people into his home with open arms and always made you feel as if his home was your home.

No matter how many of Margaret’s side of the family were in his house all at once, you never heard him complain or get upset from all the chaos - he just went with the flow and enjoyed all the company. Dean and Margaret remained together until his passing on the evening of October 30th, 2023.

Dean will be missed by all who knew him; especially his wife, Margaret; son, Louie S. Larson; daughters: Leann L. (Larson) Barrett, Leasu L. (Larson) Miller, and Leslie L. (Larson) Ludwig; stepson, Sid Aamold and stepdaughter, Christy Aamold.  

A memorial service is being planned in the Spring of 2024 and will be announced at a later date.