Northwest Montana News

Daryl R. Anderson, 77, of Libby, MT passed away at his home Sunday, February 19, 2023, surrounded by his loving family. He was born April 29, 1945 in Bonners Ferry, ID to Garland and Belle (Cummings) Anderson.  He was raised in Troy and graduated from Troy High School in 1964.  Daryl played basketball in high school until his junior year when his leg was crushed by a tree at his home on Bull Lake Rd.  He spent time at a Spokane hospital recovering from that injury.  Following high school, he enlisted in the military but could only complete 5 weeks of boot camp before that injury caused him to be Honorably Discharged.  Those events caused him to choose his career path in law enforcement.  Daryl married Theresa Alness on September 22, 1984 in Libby, MT.

Daryl served with the Libby Police Department before his career with the Lincoln County Sheriff’s office.  He worked his way through the ranks of the Sheriff’s office serving as a Sergeant, Lieutenant, and was elected as Lincoln County Sheriff, an office he held for 12 years.  He was dedicated to law enforcement, serving over 40 years with local law enforcement; a K-9 officer with his partner, Ace; 17 years as the security officer at Rosauers; extensive law enforcement school and training; President and 2nd Vice-President for the MT Sheriff & Peace Officers Association; Liaison for the MT Operation Life Savers; and a member of the National Sheriff’s Association.

Daryl was very involved with and a huge supporter of our community.  He was a founding member of the Libby/Troy Ambulance, with which he served for 7 yrs. He was big into Hands Across the Border with RCMP’s. Daryl was a founding member and was very active in the David Thompson Search and Rescue and was Liaison for the MT State Search & Rescue.  During his career in Law enforcement, Daryl was an active member in the community.  He believed volunteering helped small communities thrive in helping others.  Some additional organizations he was involved with and volunteered with include Special Olympics; Critical Incident Stress Management Team; Lincoln County Bicycle Safety Program; Backcountry Wild Man Triathlon; Northern Tier Interoperability Program; Montana Sheriffs and Peace Officer Association and the VFW Stand Down. 

He was preceded in death by his parents, Garland and Belle and a sister, Vikki Lynn.  Survivors include his wife Theresa of Libby; children Vikki Anderson (Bryan) of Anaconda, James Anderson of Helena, Stephanie Bills (Alex) of Libby, Nichole Anderson (Jason) of Stockett, MT, and Darylyn Lelm (Aaron) of Kalispell; grandchildren Zane, Marshal, Noah, Hayden, Adley, Briggs and Cassidy; siblings Ron Anderson, Allen Anderson, E.J. Anderson and Debbie Erlenbush; sister-in-law Marcy Hafferman (Dan) of Kalispell; and countless aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews. 

Services for Daryl will be 11:00 a.m. Saturday, February 25, 2023 at Libby Christian Church, 100 Kootenai River Rd.  In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you make donations to Search and Rescue, MT Sheriffs & Peace Officer Association or the MT Special Olympics.  Arrangements are under the care of Schnackenberg Funeral Home of Libby, MT.  Online condolences and memories may be shared by visiting www.schnackenbergfh.com.

Original source can be found here.