Daniel Leon Young was born May 29, 1977, to Loren and Jacklyn Young. He was the first grandchild for both grandparents and the shining star for the entire family. He was joined by a little sister, Amy Kay, two years later. Danny and Amy grew up on the farm spending time with grandparents, aunts, uncles and hired men. He could carry on farming discussions with anyone as a little boy, speaking like he was an adult explaining the inner workings of motors, tractor sizes and any implement a farmer may need. By six, Danny was driving and was the pickup man in the fields while the hired men walked behind and threw rocks in the box. The summer of Danny’s twelfth birthday, his legs were finally long enough to be in a tractor alone. His Grandpas, Bud and Leon, were very proud of this accomplishment. He was now the fifth generation working the Young Farm.

Dan met Lanette in the Fall of 1991 while attending Fairview High School and they were later married on September 28, 1996, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Sidney, Montana, with Pastor Kent Stenzel officiating. On September 19th, 2000, the next generation of the Young Farms operation made his highly anticipated appearance into the world when Alexander Blaine Young fashioned us as a family of 3. Dan could not have been more proud to now have a son, and Alex immediately became his Daddy’s top notch hired man and copilot pretty much as soon as he could toddle out the door behind him. Dan and Lanette’s family would soon become complete when Allyson Marie Young joined them ever so quickly on June 20th, 2002. Dan absolutely beamed at the birth of his beautiful baby girl.

The years quickly became filled with kids and crops and harvests intermingling with the hustle and bustle of long days on the farm and pretty much just life in general. Dan was a devoted husband and father and never missed an activity of his children if he could avoid it and was always one of their biggest fans, sometimes silently, and sometimes not so silently. Whether it be on the football field, basketball court, FFA competition, or 4-H endeavor, Dan never missed an opportunity to be wherever his family and children took him. He volunteered for everything from driving activity bus, to assisting with FFA events, and even cooking burgers or flipping pancakes in the 4-H Food Booth during every Richland County Fair.

Dan served as Chairman on the Richland County Conservation District Board for many years as well as being an active member of St. John Lutheran Church in Fairview, Montana. He could always be counted on to jump in wherever and whenever needed and was definitely a pretty good sport with whatever activity his wife wrangled him into. Dan was always available to lend a helping hand, whether it was for his family, a friend, or a neighbor, and looked forward to assisting his best friend, Dale, and their family in any way he could at their annual bull sale. Dan always made sure his calendar was clear for that event. In the winter, when things were a little less hectic on the farm and our area was actually blessed with some snow, Dan loved to snowmobile; and if snow was not to be found here in Eastern Montana, off to the mountains he would go to chase down the white stuff. He loved those snowmobile trips with his family and buddies. In general, Dan just loved the outdoors and truly some of his best times were spent hunting, fishing, or just simply driving through his cows, basking in the day, and strategizing his next crop or farming endeavor.

Dan never shied away from troubles or challenges. He always met them head-on. Unfortunately, his steadfastness and courage would be put to the test when in April of 2016, he was diagnosed with bladder cancer, and so that trying battle began. Throughout this encounter, Dan never lost his sense of humor or sheer determination and met every trial with positivity and perseverance; however, after a long, often intense, hard-fought battle, Dan’s struggles came to an end and he was welcomed home into the arms of our Lord in the early morning hours on May 26th, 2024, just days shy of his 47th birthday.

He is survived by his loving wife of 27 years, Lanette; son, Alexander Young (Fairview); daughter, Allyson Young (Fairview); parents, Loren and Jacki Young (Fairview); and sister, Amy (Neil) Iversen (Bainville), and their children, Eleanor and Henry. Also surviving Daniel is his grandfather Leon Brodhead; brother-in-law, Blaine Karst; Aunt Leann (Jim) Pelvit; Uncle Dan (Toni) Brodhead; and Uncle Mark (Julie) Brodhead, as well as many special cousins and friends.

Dan was preceded in death by his grandparents Bud & Joan Young; Aunt Christina Robinson; a very special grandmother, Myrna Brodhead; and father-in-law, Virgil Karst.

Memorial Contribution