Obituary - Duane L. Stiffarm

Duane L. Stiffarm, 47, of Fort Washakie, Wyoming, passed away on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2014, at the Huntsman Cancer Center of pancreatic cancer. Wake services will begin at 6 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 24, 2014, at the Red Whip Center in Fort Belknap. Funeral services will take place at 11 a.m., at the Red Whip Center with Melissa Jackson officiating. Burial will follow in the Stiffarm Family Cemetery in Hays.

Holland & Bonine Funeral Home has been entrusted with arrangements. Please visit Duane's online memorial page and leave a message of condolence for his family at http://www.hollandbonine.com.

Duane was born on May 2, 1967, in Fort Belknap to William and Marlene (Horseman) Stiffarm. He was raised in Fort Belknap, attending school in Harlem and graduating from Harlem High School in 1986. Duane enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1985, and served until he was discharged in 1987. He then immediately enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and served until 1991. Duane met Tricia Campbell in 1990, and the couple remained together raising their their four sons, marrying in 2007. Following his military service, Duane worked for a short time as a Kirby Vacuum salesman.

He began attending MayTech in Billings in 1991, and received his information technology training there. After his graduation from MayTech, he worked for a time for Community Development, and then the Business Development Center in Fort Belknap, honing his IT skills. He began his IT career with the Indian Health Service systems when he began working for Fort Belknap IHS. The family moved to Madras, Oregon, in 2004, where he worked for the Warm Springs Health and Wellness Center. In 2012, the family moved once again, this time to Fort Washakie, Wyoming, so that Duane could work for the Wind River and Arapaho Health Center, where he was working when he became ill.

Duane was a very family-oriented man, who loved to tell stories and share his computer knowledge and expertise. His wife and children were his world, and he was very protective of them. Duane enjoyed joking, but was also hard working and a good provider for his family. He was also considerate of others' wants and needs over his own.

Duane was preceded in death by his grandmother, Edna Ball; his aunt, Ola Cochran; and his grandfather-in-law Robert Shoemaker.

He is survived by his wife, and the love of his life, Tricia Stiffarm of Fort Washakie, Wyoming; his sons, Chance, Colton and Che' Stiffarm, all of Fort Washakie, and Jacob Campbell of Dodson, Montana; his daughter, Colleen Ann Stiffarm of Fort Washakie; his grandsons, Treyton Mount and Kaidyn Stiffarm; his parents, Bill and Marlene Stiffarm of Fort Belknap; his brothers, Dean Stiffarm Sr. of Chinook, John Stiffarm of Fort Belknap, and Stacey Cole of Harlem; his sisters, Elizabeth and Diana Stiffarm, Shawn (Gustavo) Drago and Marcia Lamere, all of Fort Belknap, and Angie Brockie-Fowler of Arizona; and numerous beloved aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews and other extended family and friends.