David Allan Merrick

David Allan Merrick – dedicated husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather, brother and friend - passed away peacefully in Hamilton,
Montana on Thursday, November 10th , 2022.
David was born to Alma Cassity and William Merrick in Boise, Idaho on March 15th , 1942. He grew up in the small town of Naturita, CO. Shortly after graduating High School, he enlisted in the Army and was sent oversees to South Korea where he served 3 years as an artillery specialist. Shortly upon leaving the Army, he moved to Lake Tahoe where he met his first wife Kathy Thomas. They had two children, Robert and Thomas.
David and Kathy were very passionate about their freedoms and represented the Libertarian Party in California. David ran for Santa Cruz County Supervisor twice and the both of them stood passionately for was right in the spirit of freedom and human rights.
Through the years, David raised his two sons in Santa Cruz, CA, enjoyed the sounds of classical music, going on long road trips and reading and writing.
In 1982, he rekindled his love from a young age of 12, with Leona Draves. They were married for 38 years until she passed away at the age of 78.
In 1997, they moved to Corvallis, MT and built a beautiful home in the Bitterroot Valley. Leona would sow the seeds of beautiful flowers and gardens and cook wonderful meals and David would landscape the 3 acres the house was built on and write his novels and poems. They called the Corvallis area home for almost 25 years.
David was a kind and passionate man. He loved entertaining, telling stories about the past and enjoyed having long intelligent conversations about politics and current events. He was actively involved in the Republican Party in Montana and acted as Campaign Manager for a Senate Candidate and served as host for the Libertarian Candidate for the Presidency of the United States.
David is survived by his two sons Robert (and wife of 25 years Elizabeth) and Thomas, Kathy Thomas, three grandchildren, Samantha, Nicole and Katie (deceased) and great grandchildren Jackson and Jasmine; his two step daughters, Tammy Tutoff and Lori Thompson and his brother Mike Patterson.
David lost his battle to Aspiration Pneumonia upon an acute stroke.

In his memory, donations can be made to his memorial fund, which will be used to purchase a bench in downtown Hamilton.
Please join his family for a day of celebration: Corvallis, MT: Saturday, June 17th at 815 Mint View Way from 2:30pm until 6 pm
A military funeral service will be held at the Corvallis Cemetery from 1:00.
His friends and family are invited to share happy memories and celebrate David’s life in the way he would want to be remembered – as a loving and caring man who enjoyed life.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of David Allan Merrick, please visit our floral store.