Ronald Thomas West

My father Ronald Thomas West passed away in Serbia on February 26th 2023 at the age of 72 years. He is survived by five children Thomas, Michael, Robert, Leon, & Erin West, and 3 grandchildren. Our family is launching this fundraiser to crowdsource contributions to have Dad's remains brought back to the US for a memorial service and ash scattering in the summer of 2023, and to help us provide bridge funds to take care of Leon (8) and Erin (5) who still reside in Serbia with their mother.

For those of you who did not know my father he spent a large proportion of his life in service of causes to benefit others, working to prevent oil exploration on sacred Native American Lands, activism around Native American issues in general, teaching, mentoring, and generally investing his heart and soul in bettering the lives of others, both materially and spiritually. He was an extremely intelligent man with a huge heart and will be missed dearly by many whose lives he touched. We do not yet have a date for his memorial service due to the uncertainties in how long it will take to have his remains returned to Montana but will share it here and on social media in general once we do.

Due to dad's passing in a foreign country, the process of obtaining his survivor benefits for Erin & Leon will be complex, expensive, and take significantly longer than normal.

The funds will be used to:

Cover legal expenses associated with repatriating Dad's remains, and registering Leon & Erin for survivor benefits from Social Security & the Veterans Administration.

Assist in the expenses associated with sending one of us to collect and escort his remains back to the US to be scattered on Priest Pass outside Helena Montana, per his last wishes, where his mentor and our adopted grandfather Pat Kennedy would frequently hold encampments and religious retreats.

If possible have Ivana, Erin, & Leon fly to the US to attend Dad's memorial service.

Finally and most importantly to provide funds to help Dad's partner Ivana take care of their two young children for whom he was the primary source of material support while we work the process of getting his survivor benefits flowing to them.

Any support is welcome and deeply appreciated. Please consider sharing this fundraiser on your social media accounts to help spread the message of Ron's passing and assist Mike, Robert, and me in taking care of his partner and our two young siblings while they work through the grieving process.

With love and gratitude,

The West Family