Brian Loucks, 37
Brian Scott Loucks passed away on Aug. 27, 2017.
He was born Aug.14, 1980, to Dennis and Debra Loucks. Brian attended Columbia Falls schools and graduated in 1999. He was a natural at sports. Brian won the state wrestling title for his weight bracket in 8th grade and excelled at baseball and football.
After graduation, Brian was hired by Northern Line Layers, a job that took him to Texas to put in fiber optic lines. Brian’s incredible work ethic made him a sought-after employee. After three years of working throughout the South, he could no longer live away from the mountains and rivers he loved so well and he returned to Montana. He was employed by a variety of business in the Flathead. Some of his favorites were working for Rodney Strunk creating beautiful rock walls all over the valley; Stanton Stones where he found a new talent for finding the best stone slabs for fireplace mantels in cliffs; and Total Label where he worked his way up to pressman. Brian also had his pilot license and flew around the valley gathering up-to-date weather information.
Brian had many loves, but his greatest was for his family, friends and faithful dog, Po. He loved to hunt and fish with his dad and they made many wonderful memories. Brian’s passion was fishing and he was a master at it. In the words of his dad, “He could catch a trout out of a five gallon bucket.” It was pure pleasure to watch the poetry that he put into motion with his fly rod. The river was his church of choice and he found great peace being there. Although he wasn’t particularly fond of picking huckleberries, he always scouted out the best patches and then took his mom into his “marble patches.” Brian took the science of gardening seriously. Through research and experimenting, he created his own formula for fertilizer and the results were simply amazing! A voracious reader, Brian had the ability to repeat word for word much of each book he had ever read. He loved Montana and often expressed his gratitude for living here and being able to enjoy the outdoors. Among his other many talents, Brian was a great cook. Nothing was low calorie, but everything was delicious, especially his stuffed huckleberry French toast.
Brian was preceded in death by his paternal grandparents, Bob and Barbara Smith; his maternal grandfather, Leonard Reeves; uncle, Chuck Reeves; aunt, Judy Loucks; and cousin, Chuck Strunk Jr.
He leaves behind his beloved dog, Po; and is survived by his parents, Dennis Loucks and Debra Reeves; a sister, Rebecca (Josh) Mahnke, and nephew, Ty Mahnke; his maternal grandmother, Faye Reeves; aunts, Carol Ost, Lenora (Ken) Eaton, Gayle Reeves and Lorna Strunk; uncle, Chuck (Cathy) Loucks; and numerous cousins.
Brian’s beautiful, caring heart, quick smile and bright light will be missed by everyone who knew him.
Go with God, Brian, and walk in peace.
A memorial service for Brian will be held at 10 a.m. on Sept. 2 at Columbia Mortuary. There will be a gathering following the service at Marantette Park in Columbia Falls. Please join us for a meal after the service and share your “Brian stories” with us.
In lieu of flowers, friends and family have created a memorial fund to help with funeral and related expenses. A GoFundMe account has been set up at: https://www.gofundme.com/brian-loucks-memorial-fund or you can send a check to: Debra Reeves at P.O. Box 1863, Columbia Falls, MT 59912.
“The unicorns were the most recognizable magic the fairies possessed, and they sent them to those worlds where belief in the magic was in danger of falling altogether. After all there has to be some belief in magic — however small — for any world to survive.” — Terry Brooks