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Samuel Henry (Sam) Miller
Samuel Henry (Sam) Miller, former Durango mayor and longtime business owner, died Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2000, in his home in Louisville, Colo. He was 85.
Mr. Miller was born Jan. 3, 1915, in Perry, Okla. He grew up on his father’s farm in Noble County and graduated from Perry High School in 1935.
Mr. Miller came to the Four Corners in 1937 to work in the oil fields. He met Rosemary Chaney, who was teaching school in Bloomfield, N.M., and they were married in 1939. They moved around the area and settled in Uravan, Colo., in 1940. Mr. Miller was a safety engineer at U. S. Vanadium Corporation there.
After Pearl Harbor, Mr. Miller enlisted in the Navy. He was soon drafted into a special combat/construction unit of the Marines to establish air fields on newly captured islands in the South Pacific. He helped build the airstrip on Tinian and watched the Enola Gay take off and return, while knowing nothing of its mission at the time.
After the war, Mr. and Mrs. Miller moved back to the Durango area and built the Spanish Trails Motel in 1946 in what was then Animas City. They were members of the Durango Motel Owners Association and the Durango Chamber of Commerce. They sold the motel and retired in 1983. They moved to Louisville in September 1995.
Mr. Miller was actively involved in the Durango community. He was instrumental in the merger between Animas City and Durango in 1948, when he first became a Durango city councilor.
He served on the council from 1948-1953 and was the mayor of Durango from 1949-50. Mr. Miller was a La Plata County commissioner from 1954-1960.
He was preceded in death in 1954 by an infant son, Sammie.
He is survived by his wife, Rosemary; two children, Colleen of Louisville, Colo., and Matt of Ithaca, N.Y.; five grandchildren; a sister, Marie and a brother, Gerald, both from Arkansas City, Kan.; and six nieces and nephews.
There was no funeral, but there will be a memorial service in Durango this spring. An announcement will appear in the Herald.
A book of impressions and memories of Mr. Miller is being compiled. Anyone wishing to contribute their memories (in lieu of flowers) can mail them to: Rosemary Miller, 962 West Willow Street, Louisville, CO 80027 or e-mail them to Matthew at mpm4@cornell.edu.
Orville McCoy
A funeral will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Durango Christian Church for Orville McCoy, a lifelong resident of the Durango area, who died Dec. 22, 2000, at Mercy Medical Center. He was 83.
The cause of death was not disclosed.
The Rev. Larry Osborne of Durango Christian Church will officiate at services. Burial will occur at Crestview Cemetery
in Durango. Visitation will be held from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday at Hood Mortuary.
Mr. McCoy was born Jan. 12, 1917, in Bayfield. He married Mildred E. McCoy on May 6, 1965, at Durango. He was a hydrographer for the Department of the Interior for 45 years. Mr. McCoy loved the outdoors, including hunting, fishing and gardening.
He is survived by his wife, Mildred; four daughters, Sandra Wells of Ely, Nev., Priscilla McCoy of Denver, Susan Holman of Indianola, Iowa, and Pamela Crawford of Grand Junction; three sons, Dell McCoy of Ely, Nev., Edwin McCoy of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., Jerry Fleener of Bayfield; seven grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; three brothers, Harold, Rex and Ted McCoy of Durango; and a sister, Audrey Talmadge of Concord, Calif.
He was preceded in death by his first wife Mae (Green) McCoy, and daughter Barby Fleener.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Mercy, 375 E. Park Ave., Durango, CO 81301.
Joseph Lawrence Springhetti
A memorial Mass will be at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Dover, Ohio, for Joseph L. Springhetti, who died Friday, Dec. 22, 2000, from injuries suffered in an automobile accident. He was 52.
Christian wake services will be at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
Those unable to attend or who wish to express a memory of Mr. Springhetti may visit the online obituaries link at www.tolandherzig.com.
Memorial donations may be made to the Humane Society Thrift Shop, 1111 S. Camino del Rio, Durango, CO 81301 or Colorado Mounted Rangers, c/o AA American, 28753 U.S. Highway 160 east, Durango, CO 81301.
Mr. Springhetti was a Colorado Ranger an employee of Durango Mountain Resort. He was a native of Ohio. His mission was to help people, especially the needy and children.
He is survived by two sisters, Norma Stadtmiller, and Mary Springhetti; a brother, Bob Springhetti; and many nieces and nephews.
Franklin ‘Frank’ D. Daniels
Franklin "Frank" D. Daniels died Saturday, Dec. 16, 2000, at Southwest Memorial Hospital in Cortez. He was 66.
The cause of death was not disclosed.
Mr. Daniels was born Sept. 15, 1934, in Lawrence City, Ohio. He was a 25-year resident of Cortez.
Mr. Daniels worked for Superior Oil Company as an oil field worker.
Survivors include his wife, Lenore Niemeyer Daniels of Cortez; and three children, Helen, Todd and Steven.
No services are planned at this time.
Ralph Edward Sundquist
Ralph Edward Sundquist, a longtime Durango resident, died Friday, Dec. 8, 2000, in Oxford, Colo. He was 60. The cause of death was not disclosed.
No services are planned for Mr. Sundquist.
Mr. Sundquist was born Feb. 23, 1940, in Chicago, before moving to Durango in the late 1960s. He was a photographer for the U.S. Navy and was honorably discharged in 1964. In 1967, he graduated from Fort Lewis College.
He later worked for the United State Postal Service and retired after 25 years of service.
He is survived by his son, Arthur Sundquist, of Durango; one step-son, Matt Schane of Dallas; one step-daughter, Jenny Mills of Woodstock, Vt.; and, three brothers, James Sundquist of Makand, Ill., Robert Sundquist of Aresen Hills, Minn., and John Sundquist of Wayne, Pa.
Contributions to help pay necessary expenses may be made to Arthur Sundquist, 3066 County Road 311, Ignacio, CO, 81137.
Dawn Lynn Reader-McCreery
A funeral will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday at Hood Mortuary Chapel for Dawn Lynn Reader-McCreery, who died Friday, Dec. 15, 2000 in a car accident near Bayfield. She was 33.
The Rev. Michael McCleary will officiate at services. Visitation will be from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday at Hood Mortuary Chapel. There will be cremation.
Mrs. McCreery was born Sept. 18, 1967, in Bountiful, Utah. She married Robert J. McCreery on May 2, 1997, at Durango.
She was a graduate of Mancos High School and Fort Lewis College. She earned her bachelor’s degree in 1997. She was in Who’s Who in America.
Mrs. McCreery ran for a seat in the state house for the Libertarian Party in the recent election in Denver.
She is survived by her husband, Robert, of Denver; one daughter, Abigail McCreery of Denver; father, Larry J. Reader of Mancos; mother, Carolyn Reader of Salt Lake City; one grandmother Dorothy Maddox of Salt Lake City; two sisters, Lisa Trainor of Phoenix, and Lora Petcoff of Denver; and, three brothers, Frank Cole of Durango, Cory Cole of Mancos, and Michael Reader of Madison, Fla.
Contributions may be made to the Robert & Dawn McCreery Scholarship Fund, c/o Fort Lewis College, 1000 Rim Dr., Durango, CO, 81301.
Onita May Johnson
Services will be at 10 a.m. Monday at Hood Mortuary for Onita May Johnson, who died Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2000, at her home in Durango from complications related to diabetes. She was 63.
The Rev. Emery Percell and the Rev. John Richardson will officiate. There will be cremation. Visitation will be from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. Sunday at Hood Mortuary.
Mrs. Johnson was born March 30, 1937, in Laurel, Mont. She had lived in Durango since 1943. She married L. Dean Johnson July 2, 1966, in Farmington, N.M.
Mrs. Johnson attended Central College in McPherson, Kan., and graduated from Greenville College in Greenville, Ill. She taught school for a number of years and worked in the La Plata County Treasurer’s office for 17 years. She was active in 4-H and the La Plata County Fair for many years.
Survivors include her husband, L. Dean Johnson of Durango; her mother, Laura Onita Percell of Durango; a brother, the Rev. Emery A. Percell of Aurora, Ill.; three sons, Anthony Johnson and Dan Johnson, both of Durango, and Timothy Johnson of Pagosa Springs; a daughter, Leslie McCaskill of Wiggins, Colo.; an aunt, Esther Buswell of Durango; and seven grandchildren.
Memorial donations may be made to the American Diabetes Association, 2450 S. Downing St., Denver, CO 80210.
W. Leon Holgate
Services will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Knudsen Avenue in Farmington, N.M., for W. Leon Holgate, who died Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2000, in Farmington. He was 81.
The cause of death was not disclosed.
Bishop Mike Heal will officiate. Burial will follow at 2 p.m. at the Kline Cemetery. Visitation will be 6 to 8 p.m. today at Brewer, Lee and Larkin Funeral Home.
Mr. Holgate was born Aug. 19, 1919, in Kline, Colo. He lived in Farmington since 1950, and was a retiree of El Paso Natural Gas.
Survivors include his wife of 62 years, Claudia (Mazie); a daughter, Merilee Bloomfield of Kirtland, N.M.; a son, James Holgate of Farmington; seven grandchildren; one brother; one sister; and several nieces and nephews.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the SW Kidney Support Group, P.O. Box 1784, Farmington, NM 87499 or N.M. NW Hospice, 608 Reilly Ave., Farmington, NM 87401.
