William Dawson List, M.D., of Helena, Montana, passed away peacefully on January 8th, 2025. Dawson was 90 years old.

Dawson was born to Charlotte and William Sr. in Newark, New Jersey on July 31st, 1934. He grew up with two younger siblings, Robert (Bob) and Mary Ellen. He attended Westfield Senior High School and played several team sports, including baseball and football. For college, Dawson went to the University of Maine. He was captain of the baseball team and one of their top hitters in 1954 and '55. Dad met the love of his life, Deanna Mae Dunfee, during his senior year at UM, and they were married for 62 years until her passing from Alzheimer's on July 6, 2021.

After college, Dawson served in the United States Army for six years, primarily helping with research and caring for animals at Walter Reed Medical Center. He wasn't sure what he wanted to do as a career. Initially, Dad thought he wanted to go into forestry, then he decided to pursue veterinary medicine. He went to Ohio State briefly to attend a few classes he needed for veterinary school, when his younger brother suggested he go to medical school. Dawson applied to Rochester Medical School and was accepted. He said it was because the person who interviewed him enjoyed discussing sports and that subject was what they talked about. He certainly did not get into medical school on grades alone!

Dad's residency was in Burlington, Vermont. Here, Dee and Dawson began their family by adopting Christie and Charles, who were 18 months apart. Once Dad finished residency, the List family moved across the United States in a green Volkswagen Beetle to the state of Montana. While the family of four was living in town near the hospital, Andrea, the 5th family member was born. Deanna designed and oversaw the building of the family home up Grizzly Gulch and that is where the List family lived from 1975 until 2020.

Dawson had a successful career as a pathologist at St. Peter's Hospital, working alongside Joe Rizza. He retired early at the age of 60 because he wanted to ride a bicycle across the country; one of the many goals he would pursue in his lifetime.

The stuff in-between these milestones of Dad's ninety years is what defines him. He affected so many lives, not just during his career as a pathologist at St. Peter's Hospital, but as a son, father, fraternity brother, friend, athlete, jogger, cyclist, skier, fisherman, hunter, member of the YMCA, Hospice volunteer, Active Army and Army Reserves, uncle, cousin, nephew, traveler, potter, guitarist, the list goes on and on.

Dawson loved people. He was loyal to a fault. If our dad didn't like you, you earned it because he gave people multitudes of chances to keep his friendship and love. Dad wasn't outwardly affectionate but loved dearly. He showed his love by sharing time with us, teaching us to have passions, and by bragging about us to his family and friends.

Dawson was humble yet extremely competitive. You could not get him started on politics; several friends had agreements with Dad to not discuss them! Our dad wrote in journals as he internalized his emotions. He didn't have a great confidence in himself, and I believe he had to continue to try new things to keep himself active and engaged and to improve himself. Dad was a goal setter and encouraged his children to set goals and to strive to reach them.

Of the many adventures that Dad had, the most notable include:

helicopter skiing in British Columbia; working on a fishing boat in Egegik, Alaska (they threw back the King Crabs); going AWOL from the Army to visit Dee; another time he went to watch a pro baseball game with his dad and college buddy John Walls; guitar lessons, pottery classes, and finance classes; traveling to England, the Netherlands, Nova Scotia, New Zealand, and many more; a three month sabbatical in South Hampton, England; hiking in the backcountry of Montana, fishing trips, horseback trips, hunting trips, floating trips. I am certain that everyone who knows our dad, has a story to tell.

Dad often said that he lived a great life. He was ready to leave this world when our mom died; however, he was needed for a few more years. Another comment that was frequently heard from Dad, "Your mom and I made the best decision when we chose to move to Montana." Dad loved Montana and all the outdoor adventures and beauty that it offered him, and he took full advantage. God speed, Dad. We love you.

Dawson is survived by his children, Charles Dawson List and Andrea Kay (List) Eckerson; son-in-law, David Eckerson; grandchildren, Grant, Logan, and Abigail Eckerson; his sister, Mary Ellen (List) Watson; nieces and nephews, Kelly Biesecker and Robin Watson-Hamilton, Malia, David, and Dawson List, Heather L. and Bethany Dunfee, and extended family throughout the country. He is preceded in death by his spouse, Deanna Mae (Dunfee) List; his daughter, Christie Ellen List; his father, William List, Sr.; his mother, Charlotte Lakin List Gendreau; his brother, Robert List.

Thank you to St. Peter's Hospice and Edgewood for taking good care of our dad in the last years and days of his well-lived life. We especially want to thank Julia, Michele, Jerry and the Edgewood staff for making Dawson part of the Edgewood family. And a special thank you to Dr. Jessica Bailey for answering our emails with concerns about our dad. He thought the world of you professionally and as a friend.

Thank you to Dawson's many friends who visited him after our mom was gone: Doug O'Looney, Vince Yannone, Fred Flanders, Jim Crichton, J. Anne Roberts, Bob Stemsrud, and others I am not remembering. Dawson greatly appreciated the many phone calls from friends and family across the country too. Our love for our dad is mirrored in the many friends and family who loved him. We miss him, as I am sure you all do.

We will celebrate Dawson's life the weekend of July 10-13, 2025, in Helena, Montana. Details will be forthcoming via email or mail. Please reach out to Andrea or Chuck with questions. Dawson will be interred at Forestvale Cemetery next to his wife, Deanna, and daughter, Christie. In lieu of flowers, donations would be meaningful to The Archie Bray Foundation, The Holter Museum, The Montana Historical Society, or a non-profit of your choosing.

A graveside memorial service will be held at Forestvale Cemetery in Helena on July 12, 2025, at 11:00 am. A catered lunch will be held after the service, beginning at 1:00 pm at the upper White Sandy Campground pavilion.