William (Bill) Dean Messenger, 92

July 20, 1929 — Feb. 17, 2022

Bill Messenger breathed his last at 2:52 a.m., Feb. 17, 2022, in his Missoula home circled by his beloved wife of 53 years, Donna, and some of their children — just the way he wanted to hike his final journey. It is fitting that for what turned out to be his last 18 months, he had returned to the Montana of his birth. Favorite days of his childhood Bill could be found in his signature overalls, exploring barefoot along Birch Creek outside Dillon, where his dad operated a small sawmill. He liked to tell about how great being one among 10 siblings was, because they had enough people to play a full football game. While the occasion is sad, the time was right. At 92, this man who had embraced life with his whole body and exuberantly canoed rivers, could barely move any longer and was burdened by Alzheimer’s.

Bill could be as stubborn as Pedro the burro, the one designated to carry some of the load for taking his young family into the wilderness. He hated to lose at cards, horseshoes, pond hockey, capture the flag and any other game you invented on the spot. At the same time his large heart beat for his siblings, children and wife — the delights of his life.

While Bill grew up loving playing games with his siblings, it was attending Centralia High School (Class of ’47) that he discovered he also enjoyed and excelled at organized sports. It tickled him to know that the bamboo pole vault record he set while attending Centralia Community College would never be broken after the advent of the fiberglass pole. He completed his physical education degree at Washington State University and immediately started a teaching and coaching career that spanned 27 years and went from Centralia, Wash., to Fort Collins, Colo.

Throughout those years his favorite sport to coach was gymnastics, and no one was exempt from his lessons — from his younger siblings to friends, and especially his own nine children — Vickie, Patti, Debi, Mike, Penny, Dennis, Tony, Lori and Eric.

Bill met Donna Kludt when they coached together at an outdoor gymnastics camp near North Bend, Wash., in 1967. He liked to say that he fell in love with this green-eyed beauty and then spent the rest of his life trying to keep up with her — a task not for the faint of heart. Their shared passion for teaching movement to young people as well as living a rural, mountain farm life anchored them.

Upon retirement from teaching in 1979, Bill fulfilled another life dream by becoming a full-time farmer/rancher at Donna’s family’s home place near Kamiah, Idaho. Those five years were rich in hand labor and family, but were rough on the wallet. The family resettled onto 10 acres south of Coeur d’Alene, Donna was hired by that school district and Bill invested in a backhoe to establish Bill’s Hoe and Blade. He also continued to help Donna at Coeur d’Alene and Lake City high school track and cross-country meets.

Finances remained tight and they lived in a two-room “bungalow” for 12 years before finally having saved enough to build the log and river-stone home that Bill designed. He, Donna and their extended family and friends built the entire place and their later grandchildren grew up loving every corner of it.

The family invites any who wish to celebrate Bill Messenger’s life to gather in Missoula, Mont., on Saturday, May 7, at 2 p.m. at The Orchard Homes Country Life Club (2537 S. Third W). You are welcome to help by bringing a potluck dish for dinner, but regardless there will be plenty for all. Following dinner, any who wish to continue reminiscing and being together are invited to a campfire at daughter Lori’s nearby house. Bring your musical instruments and stories to share with his grandkids (numbering 60 these days).

For the longer version of Bill’s life go online to “just cremation Montana” and look under their obituaries. There is also a Zoom link there for anyone who cannot make it but would like to attend virtually.