Robert S. (Bob) Dakin, 74

Robert S. “Bob” Dakin died Aug. 22, 2025 at Logan Health in Kalispell.   Bob was born to Marjorie Gibson Dakin and R.J. “Jim” Dakin Jan. 29, 1951 in Conrad, MT, joining two older brothers as fourth-generation Montanans.

 His father managed the Monarch Lumber Co. there and built homes with Army pal and partner Henry Aakre.  

In 1953, in time for a then-record cold and snowy winter,  the family moved to booming Columbia Falls, renting a drafty 2-story home where Canvas Church stands today.  

Jim managed the new Monarch Lumber Co. branch yard on North Nucleus Ave.  Jim and Marge built a duplex over four garages on 6th St. W, from where their three boys could walk to schools. 

One of the garages was modified for the boys’ bedrooms.  In 1958  they moved into the home Jim built next door on 3rd Ave. W. and the family was completed with the arrival of little sister Mary Lou.  Her arrival, the big new house, grandparents moving next door, Jim changing jobs to work for Pat Kelly, and the family’s first television made that year unforgettable for the boys.  Little Bobby and Billy wore out many bike tires on the gravel streets of Columbia Falls.   Bob had lifelong memories of weekend tent camping at Fish Creek in Glacier Park at a time when most of the campsites were occupied by other Flathead families.

Bob graduated from CFHS in 1969, briefly attended Montana State University, and later went to work for Plum Creek, where he rose to became Production Superintendent for the Columbia Falls MDF Fiberboard plant.  He married Sherry Nicoson and her five children in 1977. 

They later divorced.  In 2008 he married Claudia Smith and gained two stepsons in her boys Tom Kemppainen and Shawn Weber. He was a volunteer fireman and a school board trustee.  After his Plum Creek career, Bob and Claudia sold their home, bought a 5th-wheel camper and spent many happy years snowbirding, managing campgrounds in Arizona, working at Black Hills State Park in South Dakota,caretaking the Sacagawea Inn and then the motel for Wheat Montana at Three Forks.

He was predeceased by his parents, whom he took good care of; by brother-in-law Mike Fitzpatrick and by his Claudia in 2017.  

He moved to Coram and lived quietly with his best friend and companion, Houston, the cranky little dog nobody else could get along with.  Bob’s several age-related health issues were aggravated by a recent fall and hip fracture.  He is survived by brothers Tom and Bill (Sarah), sister Mary Lou Fitzpatrick, his stepsons Tom (Ashley)  and Shawn (Cassie), their children, and several nieces and nephews. No services are planned.

The family extends their deepest appreciation and gratitude to the staff at Beehive Homes in Columbia Falls, for their compassionate care of Bob in his last year.