Thomas "David" DesRosier, 81, passed away due to natural causes at Northern Montana Care Center in Havre, MT on Monday, June 19, 2023. In accordance with his wishes, he has been cremated.
David was born on June 4, 1942, in Browning, MT to Stuart and Helen (McCourt) DesRosier, the youngest of their eight children.
David lost his father at a young age. While in high school, he was the drummer in a band with three of his friends, was on a firefighting crew, and was on the football team. He also introduced his then football coach to one of his sisters while she was home from college. The introduction worked, and that coach became his brother-in-law.
Following his graduation from Browning High School in 1961, David joined the United States Air Force and served until his honorable discharge in 1965. He returned to Montana and attended Northern Montana College, where he met the woman who would become his wife and earned his degree in secondary education. He married Cindy Burns in 1971 after they both graduated from college.
David taught history and social studies and also coached football at the Browning High School for three years. He then worked for the Montana State Highway Department in St. Mary, Havre, and in Big Sandy, where he spent most of his career and retired from the department after 30 years of service.
He was an active member of the Big Sandy community – being a volunteer fireman, school board member, and a member of St. Margaret Mary's Catholic Church.
David enjoyed telling stories to anyone who would listen about his days stationed in Japan and France while he was in the Air Force. He loved gambling at nearby casinos and bragging about his children and grandchildren. He also enjoyed making trips over to Browning to see friends and family, and, of course, hitting the casino.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Stuart and Helen DesRosier; siblings, Jim DesRosier, Jane Shook, Sister Fan DesRosier, Patricia Bergman, Mary Lou Babcock, and Annette Munson.
David is survived by his wife, Cindy DesRosier, of Big Sandy, MT; daughter, Nicole DesRosier, of Minot, ND; son, Danny (Kaylyn) DesRosier of Missoula, MT; two granddaughters, Hattie and June; brother, Peter (Karen) DesRosier, of Drummond, MT; and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins.
Messages of condolence can be left for his family on his online memorial page on Holland & Bonine Funeral Home's website at http://www.hollandbonine.com.
The Prayer Vigil will be at St. Margaret Mary's Catholic Church in Big Sandy on Friday, August 4, 2023, at 7:00pm. The Funeral Mass is scheduled for Saturday, August 5, 2023, at 11:00am, also at St. Margaret Mary's Catholic Church.
