John Patterson

After a short battle with brain cancer, John passed away in the early morning hours of May 18, 2006.
Born in Dubois, Wyo., John moved frequently as a youth. His mother worked mostly as a ranch cook during the '20s and '30s, raising four boys by herself. John spent 1937 to 1939 in the CCCs, working on trails and fire fighting in Glacier National Park.
In May 1940, he joined the army at Ft. Missoula, but quickly transferred to a new unit at Lake Pend Oreille, Idaho. Thus began a 30-year Army and Marine Crop. career, where he fought in WWII, Korea, the 1959 Okinawa uprising, two tours in Vietnam. During this time, he was a mule packer in the 10th Mtn., mountain warfare training at 9,000 feet in Colorado, a paratrooper in the 11th Airborne, submarine duty, Amtrak driver, tank driver, drill sergeant at RTC, duty in the arctic cold of Alaska, the sweltering jungles of New Guinea, parachuted into a volcanic lake in the Philippines, the battle of Chosin Reservoir in Korea, blown up by the explosion in Hungnam Harbor, Korea, and the Tet offensive in Vietnam, He answered his country's call and served proudly.
After his military service, John worked as a jet aircraft repairman and was proud to earn his journeyman sheet metal worker certificate. Retiring from that, he joined his brother farming at Lodge Grass. He lived there until 1999, when he moved to Billings. A rugged outdoorsman, he was an avid fisherman, camper and hunter.
He enjoyed being a marine extra in John Wayne's movie, "The Sands of Low Jima," where his brother Walter had fought. With a twinkle in his eye, he would carefully explain how they put skis on those mules atop the mountain at Camp Hale Colorado.
Semper Fi, John, Happier Trails Ahead.
His mother, Mary; his three brothers, Elmer, Walter and Bill, preceded John in death.
He is survived by a son, John; and stepson, Duane Patterson; stepdaughter, Linda Champaini, all of Utah; nephews, Ben Patterson of Idaho, Stan Patterson of Washington, Gary, Cory and Kevin Patterson of Montana, and Dell Patterson of Oklahoma; nieces, Joyce Goodman, Jenean Patterson and Sharon Wolfe of Montanan; grandkids, great-grandkids, and many great-great-grandkids and great-grandnephews and nieces.
Funeral services will be held 10 a.m. Monday, May 22, at the Bullis Funeral Chapel. Interment with military honors will follow in the Hardin Fairview Cemetery. Bullis Mortuary of Hardin has been entrusted with the arrangements.