Reverend Larry Duncan Preston, age 85, of Glendive, passed away on Tuesday, March 28, 2017 at the Eastern Montana Veteran’s Home in Glendive.
A memorial service will be held on Friday, April 7, 2017 at 2 p.m. at the Westside Baptist Church in Glendive with Pastor Dan Pust and Pastor Ron Derksen officiating. Interment will be in Sheridan, Mont. at a later date. Silha Funeral Home has been entrusted with the arrangements.
Larry was born on April 9, 1931 in Sheridan to Lawrence “LB” and Elaine (Duncan) Preston. He was raised in Sheridan, and lived in Bozeman, Dillon, Waterloo, Melrose, Divide, Butte and Glendive, Mont. He graduated from Sheridan High School in 1949, and enlisted in the Navy He was a decorated Korean War Veteran who served on board Tank Landing Ship, LST-883; and was honorably discharged in 1953 as Electronics Technician Third Class. He earned a Bachelor of Science in 1957 from Montana State College in Bozeman. He next pursued education at Baptist Bible College in Denver, Colo., and in 1975, he earned a Master of Science in Education from Western Montana College in Dillon. Larry was a much-loved teacher at East Jr. High in Butte. He was an ordained minister, and pastored churches in Iliff, Colo., then in Sheridan, Waterloo and Melrose. Larry also served in various pastoral capacities in both Butte and Glendive. Larry was a member of VFW Post 1125 and American Legion Post 28 in Glendive.
He met Mildred Hale of Manhattan during his time at Montana State College and they married on November 26, 1953. They had six children; Duncan, Shelley, Evelyn, James, Michael and Elisabeth. Their marriage ended in 1979, and he married Dorothy Funk of Sheridan on April 24, 1981. After her passing in 2007, he met Eva (Libby) Walker of Glendive, and the two were married on June 13, 2009 in Billings.
Larry’s deep appreciation of Creation was evidenced by his keen interest in fishing, hunting, hiking and identifying edible mushrooms. He collected rocks and fossils, and greatly enjoyed his time spent volunteering as a docent at the Creation Museum in Glendive. His passionate interests in history and music were passed on to many of his children and grandchildren. He was very sociable, and “never met a stranger,” but his most important relationship was with the Creator, as revealed in the Bible.
Larry was preceded in death by his parents; his second wife, Dorothy; and his brother, Garry.
Larry is survived by his wife, Eva; his children, Duncan (Ellen) Preston of Oceanside, Calif., Shelley Greening of Colorado Springs, Colo., Evelyn (Kennon) Nilsen of West Memphis, Ark., James (Margaret) Preston of Voluntown, Conn., Michael (Wendy) Preston of Belfair, Wash., and Elisabeth (Bill) Penney of Haverhill, Mass.; 21 grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; and 5 nieces and nephews.
In lieu of flowers, the family encourages memorials to Gideons International to support their diligent service of placing Bibles around the world.
Remembrances and condolences may be shared with the family at: www.silhafuneralhomes.com.