Dennis McEuen

Visitation: will be held on Wednesday, May 4, 2011 from 3:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. at Stevenson and Sons Funeral Home in Broadus.

Funeral services: will be held on Thursday, May 5, 2011 at 10:00 a.m. at the Powder River Congregational Church.

Dennis McEuen went on to find his favorite horse and to search out new trails to ride on Friday, April 29, 2011, while at home surrounded by family after a short battle with cancer.

Sixty-seven years ago, a journey of a lifetime began for Dennis. The oldest son of James Edward McEuen and Aline (Beggs) McEuen was born on June 11, 1943 at Mercy Hospital in San Diego, California. As the oldest child, he became a role model, leader, and friend to his younger sister and brother. His dry wit and wry smile were always ready and carried him through all types of circumstances in his life. He attended Fallbrook Union High School in Fallbrook, California. There during the summer between his junior and senior year, a friend of his bet him $5 that he wouldnt have the guts to talk to a pretty young sophomore. With one look at the young lady, the choice was easy. He talked to her and won the five dollars. More than that, though, he gained a friend for life. Three years after his graduation in 1961, he married his high school sweetheart, Rebecca Leigh Wojcik on June 20, 1964. After his graduation, Dennis continued on to study horseshoeing in Cal Poly, California, and agriculture at Mount Sac, California.Dennis and Becky were gypsies at heart who loved one another, the outdoors, and family. Leaving California, they made their way to Paradise Valley, Nevada, where Dennis worked on a cattle ranch from 1965 to 1969. They then slipped south to Kirkland, Arizona, where he worked as a truck driver from 1970 to 1972. Later, Dennis worked for six years as a builder/contractor in Bend, Oregon from 1973 to 1979. By this time, however, the call of the outdoors and the life of a rancher was beckoning him to move the family to one of the last great places on earth, southeastern Montana. There he worked for both Charlie Emmons and Hubert Gay until purchasing property near Baking Powder Creek to farm and ranch. He and Becky bought Ralph and Charlotte Carlats ranch in 1998.

Dennis was never a person to sit still for long, however. He strove to do his best in everything and to try to make his community a better place. While in Oregon, he served on the Deschutes County Mounted Rescue, often searching for lost hikers and missing persons in the Cascade Mountains. In Montana, he served on the Powder River County District School Board and as a reserve Sheriffs officer. Until his death, he served as Disaster Emergency Services Coordinator for Powder River County. Through this position, he recorded the weather for the National Weather Service and CoCoRaHS (Community Collaborative Rain, Hail, and Snow Network). Even with all that, though, Dennis still had time to talk with friends and stranger alike. It was not uncommon to see him talking with and teaching the next generations on how to be the best person we can be and to do all we can with what we have.Dennis was a great family man, and he loved anything that involved the family. He liked to have his kids and grandchildren around him. He was an avid reader, sitting often with a book in hand with his faithful canine companion, Maddie, on his lap. He was also a philosopher, looking often at life and the possibilities we were not yet achieving. Dennis liked to encourage us to get up and do something instead of just complaining. God gives the worm to the bird, he said, but He doesnt throw it into the nest.

Dennis is survived by his wife, Rebecca, of the family ranch; three sons, Tyronne Eugene (Dianne) of Walla Walla, Washington, Levi Rex (Amel) McEuen, and Ashley William (Audra) McEuen of Huancayo, Peru; one brother, Thomas (Jan) McEuen of Bend, Oregon; one sister, Cindy (Olie) Lowe of Bend, Oregon; his father, James Edward McEuen of Redmond, Oregon, five granddaughters, Kia, Aylis, and Soraya McEuen of Huancayo, Peru, Katie McEuen of Walla Walla, and Colleena Grace; and three grandsons, Timothy of Walla Walla, Benjamin Todd of Huancayo, and Liam Carrington. He is preceded in death by his mother, Aline (Beggs) McEuen.

Should friends desire, memorials may be made to Leer es Crecer (Reading is Growing), the only childrens library in the central Andean city of Huancayo, Peru (c/o McEuen, 101 East River Road, Broadus, MT 59317).

Visitation will be held on Wednesday, May 4, 2011 from 3:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. at Stevenson and Sons Funeral Home in Broadus. Funeral services will be held on Thursday, May 5, 2011 at 10:00 a.m. at the Powder River Congregational Church. Following the funeral services, a luncheon will be held at the church. Stevenson and Sons Funeral Home has been entrusted with the arrangements. Condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.stevensonandsons.co