Clifford “Cliff” Pruitt arrived in Bozeman in 1994 with a master’s degree, a Subaru wagon, and the firm conviction that he had found the last affordable mountain town in the West. He took a position in the MSU facilities department and bought a two-bedroom on South Third for what he would later describe, at every potluck and city commission meeting, as “a perfectly normal amount of money.” The house is now assessed at a figure that makes his daughter laugh when she visits from Seattle.

He measured the town’s growth in lost parking spots and the slow migration of his coworkers to Belgrade, then to Livingston, then to towns without names on the interstate. Cliff stayed. He walked the M trail three times a week until his knees objected, then switched to the paved path around the duck pond at the regional park. He voted in every municipal election and wrote exactly one letter to the editor, in 2003, opposing a roundabout that was built anyway and works fine.

Cliff is survived by his daughter Maya, who works in healthcare administration, and his son Jonah, who lives in Belgrade and commutes the other direction. His first wife, Elaine, died in 2011. His second wife, Roberta, keeps the Subaru running.

A celebration of life will be held at Bridger Valley Memorial Chapel on Saturday at 2 p.m. The coffee will be strong and the parking limited.