Montell Seely died Tuesday doing one of the things he loved best -- recreating the experiences of his pioneer ancestors.

I met Montell 32 years ago when I took my first job after graduating from college as the editor of the Emery County Progress. He was all of 42 at the time, but he seemed like a pioneer even then.

Montell and I lived in the same LDS Ward in Castle Dale, and not long after I moved into the community, he was made a counselor in the ward bishopric and I was asked to serve as the executive secretary. We didn't have a lot in common, but we became friends.

I was a newcomer, with a new family and a new profession.

He was a man who longed for simpler times, the descendant of pioneers who were sent to the inhospitable San Rafael Swell.

Natives of Emery County are quick to point out that this area was the last place in Utah designated for settlement by Brigham Young. He died shortly after sending Mormon pioneers, Montell's ancestors among them, to try to cultivate soil that has so much alkali in it that sage brush has a hard time growing. Greasewood, which thrives on the toxic dirt, is the most common plant.

Montell was still farming that same land. When I knew him, he was operating a mercantile store in downtown Castle Dale to help finance the family farm.

When I moved to Castle Dale, the entire area was in the throes of economic growth fueled by the construction of two Utah Power-owned, coal-fired electrical plants and the subsequent boom in coal mining the plants created.

I found that growth exciting and a source of news for my small weekly newspaper, the Emery County Progress.

Montell found it a challenge to his way of life. At one point he stirred up the newcomers when he wrote a letter to the editor and complained about the "trailer trash" in the area.

At the time, about half of the community lived in mobile homes, chiefly because there weren't enough houses in the county for all the construction workers who had been hired to build the power plants, and his choice of words was unfortunate for someone trying to operate a business.

One of Seely's lasting legacies is the Castle Valley Pageant, which was first performed in August of 1978. Montell wrote the script and songs for the pageant. He also scouted out the natural outdoor amphitheater where it is still performed.

My family had left the area before that first show, but we came back to see our former neighbors perform against the backdrop of the San Rafael Swell.

Montell started the show with a flourish, driving a team of running horses pulling a wagon across the stage with the crack of a whip, and he was clearly enjoying himself. Later in the show, the performers re-enacted a mud fight in an actual irrigation ditch to demonstrate the animosity of the early water wars in Utah's deserts.

There was a good amount of religion as well, since Montell had created the pageant to demonstrate how faith was the motivating factor that induced the settlers to come to Emery County in the first place.

For Montell, the pageant was always personal. When his young daughter swallowed a balloon and choked to death, he added a heart-felt song to the pageant in which a father lamented the loss of a child who succumbed to the hardships of early pioneer life.

The LDS Church eventually took over the production of the Castle Valley Pageant, which held its final 2008 performance last Saturday. It will return in 2010.

In the late 1970s, long before it became a popular youth experience, Montell was talking about recreating the handcart experience in nearby Fairfield Canyon. Since then, he had made the journey several times, reliving as best he could the experiences of his ancestors which were so important to him.

I haven't talked to Montell in almost 30 years, but he was an unforgettable character. He will be missed by many.