Search Archived Marriage Records
Etta Mae (Poff) Turner (7/27/2006)
Longtime Cortez resident Etta Mae (Poff) Turner died at Southwest Memorial Hospital in Cortez on Monday, July 24, 2006. She was 84.
She was born to Albert Franklin and Ethel (Leach) Poff in Guthrie, Okla., on Oct. 12, 1921. She also lived in both Dove Creek and Cortez.
On Dec. 13, 1938, she married MC Turner in Grand Junction.
Mrs. Turner was preceded in death by her husband, MC Turner, in December 2005; and her grandson, Matthew Heil.
She is survived by her children, Melvin Curtis Turner, of Victorville, Calif., Virginia Turner Daniels and Joyce Edna Turner, both of Cortez, and Marilyn Fern Turner Heil, of Farmington; brothers E.G. Poff of Portland, Ore., Oran Poff of Farmington and Albert Poff of Oklahoma City; nine grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren.
A visitation will take place from 5 to 7 p.m. today, July 27, 2006, at the Ertel Memorial Chapel, 42 North Market St., in Cortez. A funeral will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 29, 2006, also at the Ertel Chapel. Burial will follow at the Dove Creek Cemetery.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Highway Church of Christ, 505 S. Cedar St., Cortez, CO 81321; or to Hospice of Montezuma, 1345 S. Broadway, Cortez, CO 81321.
Alfonso Garcia Sr. (7/26/2006)
Ignacio resident Alfonso Garcia Sr., 63, died at his home on Monday, July 24, 2006. The cause of death was cirrhosis of the liver.
He was born to Luis and Susana Rascón Garcia in Tejolocachic, Chihuahua, Mexico, on April 14, 1943. After growing up there, he came to the United States as part of a professional baseball team in Southern California.
He married Maria Hilda Bojorquez in Tejolocachic.
Mr. Garcia worked most of his life as a ranch foreman until the early 1980s.
His family said he enjoyed playing poker and tending to his horses, chickens, pigs and his dogs Spike and Poncha.
Mr. Garcia enjoyed visiting with his family. His family said he was "gentle and welcoming, always in the mood for conversation."
He is survived by his wife, Maria Hilda Garcia, of Ignacio; sons Alfonso Garcia Jr. of Forest Lakes, and Rigoberto Garcia Sr. and Elco Garcia, both of Ignacio; and nine grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his son Rumaldo Garcia.
A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. today, July 26, 2006, at St. Ignatius Catholic Church. Monsignor Daniel Huber will officiate. Burial will occur at Ignacio West Cemetery.
Pearl Marie Giacomelli (7/26/2006)
Durango resident Pearl Marie Giacomelli died at her home on Monday, July 24, 2006. She was 87.
She was born in Alamosa on Nov. 19, 1918.
A graveside service will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, July 27, 2006, at Greenmount Cemetery.
Elsie Rose Hayes Israel (7/26/2006)
Former teacher Elsie Rose Hayes Israel died in Greeley on Monday, July 24, 2006. She was 89, missing her 90th birthday by a month.
She was born to William James and Ruby Augusta Kramer Hayes in Mancos on Aug. 25, 1916. Mrs. Israel graduated from Mancos High School and went on to study for two years at the Colorado State College of Education in Greeley, where she received her teaching credentials. In 1964, she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Adams State College in Alamosa after attending summer school for several years.
She married Raymond Elbert Israel in Aztec on Jan. 18, 1941.
Mrs. Israel began her teaching career in a one-room schoolhouse in Doyleville and also taught in the one-room school house at Hermosa. Her career in the Durango area started after the family moved from Mancos to Bondad around 1952. Her husband was a cattle rancher and Mrs. Israel was a wife and mother and she was hired as the first-grade teacher at Orr School on Florida Mesa in 1957.
She was the teacher that moved into the first-grade room at the new Florida Mesa Elementary School, where she taught until her retirement in 1976, having spent most of her 29-year teaching career there.
She is survived by her daughter Shirley Ann Kennedy of Cortez; two granddaughters; and five great-grandchildren.
Mrs. Israel was preceded in death by her husband, Raymond Elbert Israel, and her son, William Raymond Israel.
A memorial service will take place at 10 a.m. Friday, July 28, 2006, at Hood Mortuary, 1261 East Third Ave. The Rev. Russell Akins will officiate. A private burial will follow at Crestview Memorial Gardens.
Walter George Fritz (7/26/2006)
Bayfield resident Walter George Fritz died at Mercy Regional Medical Center on Tuesday, July 18, 2006. He was 79.
Mr. Fritz was born to George and Pearl Mae Perkins Fritz in Shallow Water, Kan., on Jan. 20, 1927. He attended school in Shallow Water.
Mr. Fritz enlisted in the Army Air Corp in Aztec in 1945. He was stationed at Port of Spain in Trinidad and in Puerto Rico, where he served as a member of the Trinidad 549th Air Service Squadron. He was discharged in 1946 and moved to La Plata County in 1947.
He married Bertha Mae McKinnis in Aztec on Dec. 18, 1954.
Mr. Fritz worked as a carpenter with building maintenance for the Jarvis Building from 1956 to 1984. He then became the building engineer for the Bank of Durango, retiring in 1990.
Mr. Walter was a member of the Church of Christ of Durango and Bayfield. He was baptized in 1960 in Durango and attended services in Bayfield after moving there.
His family said he liked to work with wood and refinish furniture.
Mr. Fritz collected many things, including stamps, records and toy cars. He was an avid reader.
He is survived by his wife of 51 years, Bertha Mae McKinnis Fritz, of Bayfield; sister Wynona Scott of Durango; brothers Albert Fritz of Phoenix and Everett Fritz of Aztec; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Mr. Fritz was preceded in death by his son, Roger Lee Fritz.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, July 29, 2006, at the Church of Christ in Bayfield, 2011 U.S. Highway 160B. The Rev. Gene Chaplin will officiate.
Evelyn Ella McClaflin (7/25/2006)
Durango resident Evelyn Ella McClaflin died at Four Corners Health Care Center on Sunday, July 23, 2006. She was 87.
She was born to Arthur and Alma Willberg Hagan in Redstone, Mont., on April 17, 1919.
On Feb. 24, 1944, she married William Ernest McClaflin in San Diego, where they spent most of their married life. Mrs. McClaflin moved to Durango to live with her daughter, Patty McClaflin, in 2003.
Her favorite pastimes were crocheting and bowling. Her family said that leaving her bowling league when she moved to Durango was a big loss.
Mrs. McClaflin was preceded in death by her husband of 59 years, William McClaflin.
She is survived by her daughter, Patty McClaflin, of Durango; son Gary McClaflin, of Cypress, Calif.; brothers Gene Hagan and Art Hagan, both of Redstone, Mont.; sisters Francis Chaffin of San Diego and Ada Olson of Minneapolis; five grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
A private memorial service will be held in San Diego at a later date.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Hospice of Mercy, 3801 Main Ave., Durango, CO 81301.
Terry S. Aber (7/24/2006)
Terry S. Aber, a general contractor in Durango for many years, died Friday, July 21, 2006, at Mercy Regional Medical Center. Mr. Aber was 60.
"He lived a good life and lost a long battle with illness," said his wife, Nancy Aber.
He was born in Orange, N.J., the son of Charlotte Aber and the late Joseph Aber.
Survivors include his wife; mother, Charlotte Aber of Reno, Nev.; brothers, Bob Aber of Reno and Joseph Charles Aber III of Nevada; daughter, Cindy Aber of Falon, Nev.; son, Scott Aber of Phoenix, Ariz.; and four grandchildren.
No services are planned at this time.
Joe David Carmeneros (7/23/2006)
Joe David Carmeneros, 86, died Wednesday, July 19, 2006, at The Valley Inn, in Mancos.
He was born in Durango to Fabian and Micaela Carmeneros on Dec. 11, 1919.
Known as "Nomad Joe," Mr. Carmeneros worked in various jobs, which took him to many cities. He loved to travel and be independent. Between jobs, he always stopped in Durango to visit his hometown.
Mr. Carmeneros settled down when he worked as a custodian at the University of Colorado in Boulder, from the early 1970s, until he retired in 1998.
Mr. Carmeneros loved the outdoors and joking around.
Mr. Carmeneros is survived by his brother Fabian Carmeneros Jr. of Erie; his sister, Fannie Baca of Ignacio; and numerous nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by a brother.
Visitation will be from noon to 4:30 p.m., Monday, July 24, 2006, at Hood Mortuary in Durango. A recitation of the rosary will occur at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at St. Ignatius Catholic Church in Ignacio.
A Mass of Christian burial will be at 10 a.m. Tuesday, July 25, 2006, at St. Ignatius. Burial will follow at Ouray Memorial Cemetery in Ignacio.
Memorial contributions can be made to The Valley Inn, 211 W. Third Ave., Mancos, CO 81328.
Phyllis Gene Rogers (7/22/2006)
Phyllis Gene Rogers died in Durango on Tuesday, July 18, 2006. She was 78.
Mrs. Rogers was born to Guy and Ortha Stanton in Wellington, Utah, on Oct. 18, 1927.
She is survived by a daughter who lives in Durango and two sons, one of Delta and one of Longmont.
No services are planned. Cremation will occur.
Alma Kay Dowd (7/20/2006)
A memorial service for Alma Kay Dowd will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, July 23, 2006, at St. Mark's Episcopal Church. Mrs. Dowd died on June 1, 2006.
Robert Jean Helm (7/20/2006)
Ignacio resident Robert Jean Helm, 77, died at his home on Monday, July 17, 2006. The cause of death was a blood clot in his leg.
He was born to William and Lola (Gobeli) Helm in Stevens Point, Wisc., on May 5, 1929.
Mr. Helm served in the Air Force from 1947 until the beginning of the Vietnam War. He fought in the Korean War, where he was wounded several times.
Mr. Helm constructed electric lines and was a sign maker for the U.S. Forest Service. He became a farmer after moving to Ignacio at the beginning of 1985.
He married Nonie Phillips in Ignacio on Feb. 14, 1985.
"A lot of people thought he was a bit of a grump," his wife said. "But he was really friendly and liked to visit with people. He was extremely kind to animals."
Mr. Helm is survived by his wife, Nonie Phillips-Helm, of Ignacio; stepchildren Clinton Ragsdale of Farmington, Morgan Ann Ragsdale of Phoenixville, Pa., Tyler Phillips and William Phillips, both of Ignacio; and Duane Phillips-Parrie of Tulsa, Okla.; and seven grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday, July 23, 2006, at the family home, which is located at 6198 Colorado Highway 151. Cremation will occur.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the La Plata County Humane Society, P.O. Box 2164, Durango, CO 81302.
