Douglas Oldfather Abbott

1941 - 2021

Douglas Oldfather Abbott

Douglas Oldfather Abbott was a man of many interests and talents and enjoyed expanding these interests and sharing his talents.

He was born on November 30, 1941 in Columbus, Ohio, the youngest of three children of Dr. Kenneth Abbott and Helen Oldfather Abbott. He graduated from the Columbus Academy in 1959 and completed his undergraduate degree in Zoology at the University of Wyoming. He received his PhD in Microbiology from the Ohio State University in 1972 and accepted a teaching position at the Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky

His love of the West, from the years he spent in Wyoming, motivated him to accept a position in the Montana Department of Health and Environmental Sciences. He became the Bureau Chief of the Laboratory Service Bureau prior to retiring in 1997. He also taught as an adjunct faculty member at Carroll College.

His retirement was brief and he accepted a position with the U.S. Department of Agriculture as Director of the Food Emergency Response Network in Athens, Georgia. He retired from his position in 2009 and began his third career.

As a lifelong member of the American Society for Microbiology, he volunteered to share his expertise in a variety of projects in Tanzania and Ethiopia for the past eleven years.

Douglas was a proud member of the Helena Kiwanis Club and served as president in 1990.

He enjoyed music and sang bass in various community organizations such as the Helena Symphony Chorale, Musikanten Montana and in the choir at St. Mary Catholic Community where he was a parishioner.

His hobby was target shooting at the ranges around Helena.

He is survived by his wife Mary Lou, son Raymond and daughter-in-law Jilann and their children Matthew and Ashleigh; son Michael and his daughters Cassie, Noelle and Emily. He is survived by his brother William and sister Ann as well as nieces and a nephew.

Please visit www.aswfuneralhome.com to offer a condolence to the family or to share a memory of Douglas.