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Sandra Ellen Vigil
No services are planned for Sandra Ellen Vigil, who died Thursday, Feb. 4, 1999, at her home in Ignacio after a battle with cancer. She was 37.
Mrs. Vigil was born March 26, 1961, in Salt Lake City. She was a longtime resident of Ignacio.
Mrs. Vigil was employed as a waitress.
Survivors include her mother, Lois Sweat Groesbeck of Salt Lake City; two sons, Randy Hoover and Daniel Hoover, both of Salt Lake City; two sisters, Tammy Searcy and Sarah Groesbeck, both of Salt Lake City; three brothers, Dennis Groesbeck of Anchorage, Alaska, and Louis Groesbeck and Don Brower, both of Salt Lake City; and one grandchild.
Daries ‘Chuck’ Lile
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Friday at St. Columba Catholic Church for Daries "Chuck" Lile, who died Monday, Feb. 8, 1999, in Durango after a two-year battle with cancer. He was 54.
The Rev. Mike McCleary will officiate. Burial will be at Greenmount Cemetery. A Rosary service will be at 6 p.m. Thursday at the church.
Mr. Lile was born July 17, 1944, in Pueblo. He attended Pueblo County schools and graduated from what is now the University of Southern Colorado.
Mr. Lile was a registered professional engineer. He retired after 31 years of service in water resources for the state of Colorado. He began his career in state government in 1967 with the state Engineer’s Office.
In 1978, Mr. Lile was promoted to division engineer of Water District 7 in Durango.
In 1992, he was appointed director of the Colorado Water Conservation Board. He served as alternate commissioner of the Upper Colorado Basin Compact Administration Commission and governor’s representative to the Western States Council and Salinity Forum.
He was a member of the Colorado Groundwater Commission and the Arkansas River Compact Administration.
Mr. Lile was a charter member of the Steamboat Springs and Parker Rotary clubs and charter president of the High Noon Rotary Club. He was a member of the Elks’ Lodge of Durango and an active member of St. Columba Church, serving on the St. Columba School board for many years.
Survivors include his wife of 32 years, Leesa; two sons, Chip Lile and Chris Lile, and a daughter, Carrie Lile, all of Durango; his mother, Merle Lile, a brother, Jerry Lile, and a sister, Cleone Marich, all of Pueblo; and numerous other relatives.
James Mark Jones
A memorial Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Thursday at St. Columba Catholic Church for James Mark Jones, who died Monday, Feb. 8, 1999, in Bailey of a heart attack. He was 45.
The Rev. Mike McCleary will officiate. A Rosary service will be at 5 p.m. today at St. Ignatius Catholic Church.
Mr. Jones was born Oct. 14, 1953, in Durango. He married Jean Parkinson June 9, 1979, in Durango. He was a graduate of Durango High School and Fort Lewis College.
Mr. Jones was a Division of Wildlife employee for 22 years. He was honored in 1983 as wildlife officer of the year.
Survivors include his wife, Jean Parkinson Jones of Bailey; his father, James Jones of Ignacio; his mother, Naoma Velarde Jones of Ignacio; a son, Adam Jones, and a daughter, Therese Jones, both of Bailey; a brother, Juvie Jones of Ignacio; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Memorial donations may be made to the James Jones Children’s Education Fund, c/o Norwest Bank, P.O. Box K, Durango, CO 81302, or to the Fort Lewis Foundation Fund, 1000 Rim Drive, Durango, CO 81301.
Marilyn Paulek Vitali
Services are pending for Marilyn Paulek Vitali, who died Monday, Feb. 8, 1999, in Denver after a year-long battle with cancer.
She was 65.
Mrs. Vitali was born in 1933. She was the daughter of the late Victor and Marguerite Paulek, pioneers of the Breen and Hesperus area.
Mrs. Vitali grew up in that area and graduated from Durango High School in 1951.
Survivors include her husband, Achille Vitali of Denver; three daughters; one son; one brother and numerous cousins and other relatives in this area.
Ruby B. Kroeger
Services will be 2 p.m. Saturday at the First United Methodist Church for Ruby B. Kroeger, who died Tuesday, Feb. 9, 1999, in Albuquerque, N.M.
She was 81.
The Rev. Rick Calhoun will officiate. Burial will be at Greenmount Cemetery.
Mrs. Kroeger was born April 30, 1917, in Bristol. She married Phil Piatt in 1933 in La Mar.
She married John Kroeger in 1945 in Denver, and they moved to Durango shortly after that.
Mrs. Kroeger worked for Gradens Department Store, McKnight Brothers Jewelry Store and retired from La Plata Electric in 1983.
Mrs. Kroeger was active in Beta Sigma Phi and was honored with a 50-year pin.
After retirement, Mrs. Kroeger moved to Aztec, N.M., and had lived there since 1993.
She was preceded in death by her husband, John A. Kroeger in April 1985, a brother and an infant son.
Survivors include four sons, A.E. (Gene) Piatt of Colorado Springs, Gary Piatt of Boyce, Va., Allison L. Kroeger of Aztec, N.M., and Dennis Kroeger of Farmington, N.M.; three daughters, Patricia Morris of Colorado Springs, Emily Ter Maat of Durango and Colleen Coker of Lakeside, Ariz.; a sister, Elsie Robinson of Springfield; 15 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren.
Memorial donations may be made to the American Diabetes Foundation, Colorado Affiliate, 2450 S. Downing Street, Denver, CO 80210 or to the Arthritis Foundation, Rocky Mountain Chapter, 2280 S. Albion Street, Denver, CO 80222-4906.
The cause of death was not available.
Emma Marie Tarpley
Services will be 10 a.m. Saturday at the First United Methodist Church for Emma Marie Tarpley, who died Tuesday, Feb. 9, 1999, in Durango.
She was 91.
The Rev. Rick Calhoun will officiate. Burial will be at Greenmount Cemetery.
Mrs. Tarpley was born Dec. 1, 1907, in Garnett, Kan. She married A.R. Tarpley April 20, 1930, in Batesville, Ark.
Mrs. Tarpley was a graduate of the University of Arkansas where she received her degree in education. She taught science at Eisenhower Elementary School in Tulsa, Okla., for 35 years.
She and her husband were active members at Boston Avenue Methodist Church in Tulsa, Okla., and the First United Methodist Church in Durango when they moved to Colorado in 1984.
Mrs. Tarpley was a life member of the Oklahoma Education Association and the National Education Association. She was active with the United Methodist Women and the Mercy Auxiliary in Durango. She enjoyed cooking, nature and traveling.
She was preceded in death by her husband in 1985.
Survivors include two daughters, Betty Palmer of Fort Worth, Texas, and Patty Gartman of Dallas, Texas; a son, Bill Tarpley of Durango; a sister, Roberta Kennedy of Prairie Grove, Ark.; seven grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.
Memorial donations may be made to the Durango Foundation for Educational Excellence, 201 E. 12th Street, Durango, CO 81301; Centura Health-Mercy Auxiliary, 375 E. Park Ave., Durango, CO 81301 or First United Methodist Church, 2917 Aspen Drive, Durango, CO 81301.
The cause of death was not available.
Alicia Mergelman Sullivan
Memorial services will be 2 p.m. Friday at the Pine River Valley Baptist Church for Alicia Mergelman Sullivan, who died Tuesday, Feb. 9, 1999, in Durango.
She was 77.
The Rev. Joe Sparks will officiate. After the services, friends and family are invited to a reception at the fellowship hall at the church. Remains will be interred at the family ranch in a private ceremony.
Mrs. Sullivan was born April 8, 1921, in Gunnison. During World War II, she was a secretary in Washington, D.C.
Mrs. Sullivan was a homemaker. She was a resident of the Ignacio area.
Mrs. Sullivan was a member of the La Plata County Fair Board for 29 years and was a 4-H council sponsor and food superintendent. She was a member of the CowBelles for 40 years, Mt. Allison Grange for 25 years and Spring Creek 4-H for 24 years, and a member of the Home Demonstration Club.
Survivors include her husband, David Sullivan of Ignacio; a son, Chuck Sullivan of Cortez; four daughters, Pat Moralez of Craig, Peggy Rieke of Laramie, Wyo., Roxanne Gillenwater of Bayfield and Sheri Frizell of Elizabeth; a sister, Charlene Mangum of Eckert; 13 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
Memorial donations may be made to the Spring Creek Community Association, c/o Sally Powell, 5962 County Road 334, Ignacio, CO 81137.
The cause of death was not available.
Helen Cross
Private memorial services will be held at a later date for Helen Cross, who died Friday, Feb. 5, 1999, at Four Corners Health Care Center in Durango from natural causes. She was 81.
Mrs. Cross was born Nov. 16, 1917, in Clovis, N.M. She married James Ralph Cross in 1940 in Santa Fe, N.M.
Mrs. Cross was preceded in death by her husband, James Ralph Cross, in 1985.
She is survived by two sons, Donald Cross of Bayfield and Jerry Cross of Crofton, Md.; a brother, James Hall, of Aztec, N.M.; half-sisters Joy Grant of Fort Worth, Texas, Bonnie Smith of Magnum, Okla., and Nancy Hall, of Denton, Texas; four grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Jerry L. Young
Funeral services will be 10 a.m. Monday at the Pine River Valley Baptist Church in Ignacio for Jerry L. Young, a lifelong local resident, who died Thursday, Feb. 4, 1999 in Durango from complications following a heart attack. He was 65.
Pastor Curt Alderton of the Ignacio Community Church will officiate at services. Burial will be at the Allison/Tiffany Cemetery. Visitation will be today at Hood Mortuary from 1:30 until 5:30 p.m.
Mr. Young was born Sept. 21, 1933, in Durango. As a boy, Mr. Young worked on the family ranch in Allison and graduated from Ignacio High School. A well-known local outdoorsman, sharpshooter and hunter, he attended Adams State College and Fort Lewis College and served in the U.S. Army. In 1984, he established a national record in long-range pistol silhouette.
Mr. Young worked for many years at the Ignacio Locker Plant and as a long-haul and mail truck driver before retiring in 1997.
He is survived by his wife, Donna Lunsford Young of Ignacio; three daughters, Terri Martin of Chandler, Ariz., Christy Vogel of La Selva Beach, Calif., and Stacey Young of Burlington, Vt.; a brother, Don Young; two grandchildren; one great-grandchild and a large extended family.
Memorial gifts may be sent in lieu of flowers to the Ignacio Community Church, the Ignacio Volunteer Emergency Squad (IVES), the National Rifle Association (NRA) or a favorite charity.
