Anne Castren, 62

Anne Clinton Zabriskie Castren, 62, passed into light and love on Nov. 20, 2025. A woman of radiant grace and love, she is missed in ways language cannot fully express.

Anne was born in 1963 in the Philippines to the Rev. George and Thyrza Zabriskie, the second of their three children. Her father’s work led the family to Cambridge, Massachusetts, St. Louis and Larchmont, New York. Anne first came to Montana in 1974 with her family as a dude at the Elkhorn Ranch. She later returned to spend her summers working there.

Anne attended Wellesley College, earning her Bachelor of Arts in religious studies. She also competed on the varsity field hockey and lacrosse teams. In later years, Anne obtained master’s degrees in general education from the University of Montana and in administration from Montana State University.

In 1988, Anne married Chad Castren in the meadow of her parents’ home in Vermont, thus beginning a long marriage full of love, adventure and time in nature. Along the way, two sons and many beloved pets joined them. Izaak, Ruben, and Chad were her greatest source of her pride and joy.

Her 30-year teaching career began in the one-room Salmon Prairie School House. From there, Anne taught at the Swan River School, Elrod Elementary and Kalispell Middle School, encouraging, guiding and touching the hearts and lives of countless young people. Her final two working years were spent as a vice principal and activities director at the middle school.

Wherever she went, Anne brought community together. She loved spending time with friends, including those in her painting, running, ukulele, book, bridge and spiritual formation groups. She was deeply involved at Northridge Lutheran Church and served as co-congregational president and as co-liaison between the church and Growing Roots Preschool. She cherished making memories with extended family at the Zabriskie Family home in Hancock Point, Maine, and loved being out in nature whether running, biking, Nordic skiing, hiking the high places of Glacier Park, or sailing along the coast of Maine.

When cancer entered Anne’s life, she refused to let her diagnosis define her and continued to find joy in community and traveling with family and friends. She bravely and skillfully navigated the health care system, researching and participating in clinical trials with determination, patience and relentless positivity.

Anne was preceded in death by her parents, her great-niece, Letty and her best dog, Bo.

Surviving Anne are her beloved husband and partner in many adventures, Chad; their son, Izaak and his fianceé, Freeha; their son, Ruben and his wife, Lia; her sister, Laura and her fiancé, Paul; and her brother, Gray; as well as many loving nieces, nephews, cousins and aunts.

At Anne’s request, in lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the International Cancer Advocacy Network (askican.org) or to the Northridge Lutheran Church — Growing Roots Early Learning Scholarship (checks should be sent to Northridge Lutheran Church with "Growing Roots" in the memo). A celebration of Anne’s life will be held at Northridge Lutheran Church at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 6. The service will be livestreamed on Northridge Lutheran’s YouTube channel.