Ernest Julian Moss was a 1984 Industrial Arts Education graduate of Western Montana College, now known as the University of Montana Western.  Previously, he earned a BA in Liberal Arts from Washington State University and later earned an MS in Mental Health Counseling from Montana State University. Ernie trained as a commercial diver, served in the US Coast Guard, worked as a squad leader for a USFS Hotshot fire crew, and traveled extensively before he seriously pursued his college career.

Ernie initially came to Dillon as a crew leader for the BLM Youth Conservation Corps.  He was an avid hiker, hunter, boater and fly fisherman and worked as a fishing guide during his Dillon years.  Ernie was also an accomplished carpenter, jeweler and metal smith and had showings of his art work in galleries in Big Fork and Santa Fe, NM. Ernie devoted the last twenty years of his career to community mental health serving as clinical director of centers in both Texas and New Mexico. 

Ernie loved the land, the sky, the rivers and the sea and their myriads of wild life.  He loved traveling, rockhounding, gardening, reading and listening to music and collecting textiles from Turkey, the Middle East and Mexico. He loved his family, friends and pets most of all. 

Ernie would be most pleased to support aspiring college students who are dedicated to keeping our Earth and all its creatures healthy and free from harm.  His family has established the Ernest Julian Moss Scholarship for UMW Environmental Sciences students in that spirit and in his honor.