Duane Francis

This photo is unusual because Duane is standing still. He has rarely been seen standing still since he landed his Cessna 205 at Ryan Airfield in the Spring of 2018, and immediately began helping maintain the place.

Duane’s high school job was as a country-western radio DJ, but he saw more of a future in construction, and joined a masonry crew. He eventually operated his own construction company, then sold it and continued to work in construction for twenty more years, building commercial and residential structures, and many airplane hangars in the Bend, OR area.

He invested his contractor experience throughout the Ryan Barn project, typically the first person on the site each morning. “It’s been interesting to see it all shape up, all within one year. There was great help from RAF volunteers, and I met wonderful people,” he said. “I really enjoyed working with the Amish folks. I tried to outwork the young ones,” he added, with a slight tone of defeat.

For relaxation, Duane and his wife Jean volunteer as campground hosts in Glacier Park’s campgrounds, and they volunteer at the Montana Veterans home in Columbia Falls, where Butchie Ryan lives. It’s not far from Duane and Jean’s home in Whitefish. 

“Now that we’re retired in Montana, we make time to give back to our community,” Duane said.

Duane was always “mesmerized” by flight. His dad took him to Klamath Falls to watch aircraft ops at Kingsley Field. Duane and three other boys bought a C172, then found an instructor. Duane studied on his own to pass the FAA written test, and earned his instrument and seaplane ratings, but when his instructor took him into the Oregon backcountry, he became passionate about that kind of flying. He and Jean owned several 182s then he decided the 205 would be “a great backcountry RV”, and they’ve been enjoying it ever since.

He has explored “most of the unpaved airports” in Idaho, Montana, Washington, and Oregon, and realized some of them were in danger of closing, so the RAF mission impressed him. He has certainly followed through on his intention “to get more involved helping the RAF.”
The Francis family includes five grown kids and four Schnauzers. Among all these responsibilities, Duane continues to practice what he has always told his children. “Do something that makes a difference. Find a way to make it better than you found it.”

Submitted on November 10, 2020

Written by Carmine Mowbray