Lawrence Anthony James

It is with sadness that we announce that Lawrence Anthony James, 84, passed away at his home in Libby Montana, on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. 

Larry was born in Elmhurst, Illinois on March 8, 1941 to George and Roberta James. His brother Charles (Chuck) was born on Aug. 1, 1945. Larry was 9 years old when his father (who was the Postmaster in Lombard, Illinois) was given the opportunity by a close family friend who lived in Libby to move his family there to fill the available position of Postmaster. 

It was winter and his father decided that he and Larry should take the Empire Builder train from Chicago to Libby for the interview. His father accepted the position and soon the family moved to Libby where he started school. 

From 1954 to 1955 in the early dawn Larry was a paper boy for the Great Falls Tribune newspaper and delivered papers to homes in Libby. In 1957 to 1958 he was a delivery person to Troy, Montana (18 miles west of Libby) for the Fashion Dry Cleaners. When recounting the story, he would say that his favorite part of the job was delivering to the Dancehall Girls! 

Following that, in 1958 he was hired as a Section Worker for the Great Northern Railway. On two separate occasions Larry volunteered his time with a Libby Church Youth Group who travelled to Costa Rica to build playgrounds for youngsters. Later, while at college, one of his summer jobs was working for the Forest Service as a surveyor where he helped lay-out what is now the Teepee Creek Road.

He graduated from Libby High School in 1959 with honors and upon graduation he continued his education at the University of Idaho. While there he was a proud member of the ROTC Program. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary Education, which included being a student in the language Lab, he developed a desire to teach English as well as Spanish. 

At one point, he decided to further his education by attending night classes at a local community college where he also learned Latin. In 1964 he accepted a teaching position at La Quinta High School in Garden Grove, California where he began and ended his 45-year teaching career in a variety of classes, which did include both English and Spanish. He left a legacy of love for teaching and is remembered for his eagerness to make sure every student was treated with respect, equality and kindness.

Early on he developed an interest in volleyball and helped start the program for both boys and girls teams at La Quinta. He had a very successful coaching career where he amassed over 750 victories, won numerous league and regional championships, was inducted into the CIF Southern Section Hall of Fame in 2015, and La Quinta High School Hall of Fame in 2017. Due to his success, he was invited to assist at the volleyball venue during the 1984 Olympics. He was able to take his entire family to the Closing Ceremonies, creating forever memories for them all.

During his tenure he also became the Associated Student Body Advisor, which included maintaining the Student Body Store. During this time a number of new students were arriving from Vietnam who did not speak English. Larry decided he should try to communicate with them and teach them English, so he purchased a transcribed Vietnamese word book. This enabled him to learn words and phrases in Vietnamese in order to talk with them, and also so they could learn English from him. By the end he had become fluent in his third language, Vietnamese.

He also successfully introduced the tradition of building litters (floats) for Homecoming. After school, each class had their ASB students build the floats by individually folding pieces of tissue paper and then attaching them to a chicken wire frame. Similar to the Rose Parade, there was always a theme the classes would use to create and build their litters, which were judged by faculty and awarded a winner. 

Then, at halftime of the Homecoming football game, the queen and princesses were paraded around the track with each class hoisting the litter atop their shoulders. Through the teaching years Larry received numerous honors from the City, District and State, and in 1993-1994 he was presented with the prestigious Educator of the Year Award. He was also awarded the Certificate of Congressional Recognition that same year. Upon his retirement he received numerous accolades, including from the California Legislature Assembly and the United States House of Representatives.

Throughout his life, Larry heard the call to the outdoors. He enjoyed anything that took him into the mountains, notably exploring the many trails around Libby. In the summer of 1962 he joined the Forest Service in Ketchikan, Alaska. 

Thereafter, for 30 years, he expanded his desire to hike and became a Wilderness Ranger in the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness surrounding Libby. Every summer month he hiked a total of 450 to 500 miles, appreciating ever mile for all that he experienced. Most notably, he enjoyed the beauty, the animals and conversing with other hikers. He would often say that for him being in the woods was his church; it gave him strength, purpose and filled his heart with love.

Larry was an extraordinary father and grandfather and is survived by his loving wife, Cheryl, and their son Kyle (Mindy) James of Libby, Montana, a grandson Connor James of Missoula, Montana, and granddaughters Kallista and Jessamin James of Libby, Montana. 

Larry was preceded in death by his father, mother and brother. 

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 21, at the Schnackenberg Funeral Home in Libby. A celebration of life will be held at Larry and Cheryl’s home on May 16, 2026.