Merle Wayne Heitzman, 76, of Fort Benton, loved son, brother, husband, father and grandfather, passed away peacefully on October 14th, 2024.  Born to Walter and Mary Heitzman Jan 17th, 1948 and grew up in Hardin, MT on the Heitzman family farm with his three sisters, Joanne, Arlene, Rhonda and brother Duane.  He had a lifelong love of fishing, hunting and sports.  After high school, he attended Northern Montana College in Havre, running on the track team and receiving a degree in Agriculture.  Merle and Nancy met at Northern and were married and moved to Harden, then to Billings for several years before settling back in the Shonkin mountains, where they worked and raised 3 children, Aaron, Heidi and Tiffany.  Merle loved working on the ranch with Alfred (his father in law), working with horses, haying, and riding on the annual fall roundup in the Highwood's.  Merle was a fierce supporter of his kid's sporting endeavors, spending countless hours coaching and cheering them on. He loved living in the Shonkin mountains and spending time with his family and especially his grandchildren, Trey, Morgan, Sophie, Izzy, Colin and Ella.

A celebration of Merle's life has been planned for Sunday October 27th, at 2pm in the Shonkin mountains, near the old cow camp, with a reception at 4pm at the Club House VFW Post, 1411 Main ST, Fort Benton, MT  59442.