Obituaries
Richard (Rick) Dana Shaw
Mar 3, 2026
Rick died peacefully on March 3, 2026, in Durango, Colorado. Rick was known for his warm smile and the unmistakable twinkle in his blue eyes. He loved gathering around great bonfires, traveling down dusty back roads, and embracing every adventure life had to offer.
Wherever a beautiful soul has been, there remains a trail of beautiful memories.
Rick will be deeply missed...
Kenneth Edward Zipperer
Mar 1, 2026
Kenneth Zipperer, passed away peacefully in Durango, CO, on March 1, 2026, after a long and full life. He was 96.
Kenneth was born on September 28th, 1929, in Savanah, GA, to Christian and Addie Zipperer. He was the middle child and only son, with both an older and younger sister. He was raised in Miami, FL, where he graduated high...
Sally Florence
Feb 26, 2026
Sally Florence passed away peacefully at home, surrounded by family, on Thursday, February 26, 2026. She was 73.
Born September 16, 1952, in Cleveland, Ohio, to John and Winnie-Fred Doeg, she grew up playing tennis in California and later settled in Southwest Colorado, where she cared for her horse, Hungry, and her family. She had a natural gift for hospitality and...
Joanne Elizabeth Brennan
Feb 26, 2026
Joanne Elizabeth Brennan passed peacefully on Thursday, February 26, 2026 in Durango, Colorado. She had reached the incredible age of 93. Joanne was born February 17, 1933 to James Arthur and Kathleen Pearce (nee Brice) in her hometown of Durango.
She was proud of her Irish origins, proud to be a Durango pioneer and proud to be a lifelong Durango native....
Larry "Tank Scott" Wayne Newsome
Feb 25, 2026
Tank Scott passed away in Durango in the compassionate care of Mercy Hospice on February 25, 2026. Tank was raised on a ranch in Leander, TX. He loved horses and had a connection to them and other animals. They loved him. He was a big guy with a big heart and a deep well of feelings. When you got to...
William "Billy" Joseph Cooper
Feb 24, 2026
Leaving behind his two precious sons, Jungle Cooper, wife Heather, and their children Ian and Zabella Cooper, and Liam Cooper, wife, Uriah, and daughter Evelyn Cooper; sister, Patricia Benavidez, and her children Beau Beckham, Chelsea, and Alexa; brother, Robert Cooper, wife Janice, and their children, Madison and Zacheriah (Cooper) Wilson. His nieces, Kayla and Tawnie Benavidez; and his nephew, Talon...
Michael Wayne Vanover
Feb 24, 2026
Michael was born in Baltimore, MD but was reared in south Louisiana. He was often identified as a “Cajun with a Strange Last Name”! He and his wife, Renee, have been together for 49 years successfully merging their diverse south Louisiana/Colorado cultures while living in three Louisiana cities (New Orleans, Berwick, and Morgan City), Houston, TX, and Pagosa Springs, CO....
Lester Henry SunEagle
Feb 22, 2026
Henry SunEagle had many passions in his life. He loved rock music, basketball, going for walks, and the community of family, neighbors, and coworkers that he had around him. The foundation of his life was always his connection to his Native roots.
He was a member of the Pitahawirata Band of the Pawnee Tribe and was involved with the Four Corners...
Eli William Robinson
Feb 20, 2026
Eli William Robinson, 33, died on February 20, 2026, in a ski accident in Colorado — fittingly, doing something he loved. Born on November 9, 1992, in Ithaca, New York, Eli lived his life with uncommon energy, curiosity, and heart.
Raised in upstate New York by his loving parents, Lawrence and Marcie Robinson, Eli grew up with a deep appreciation for...
Denise Marie Santille
Feb 19, 2026
At the age of 60, Denise Marie Santille passed away at the Pagosa Springs Medical Center after a year-and-a-half-long battle with metastatic breast cancer. She was surrounded by the love, presence, and support of her family-those she cherished above all else. Born in Elmira, New York, on September 18, 1965, Denise was the daughter of the late Robert M. Woods...
Timothy Branden Pearce
Feb 17, 2026
Timothy Pearce, 48 of Durango, Colorado, left this world on February 17, 2026. At the time of his death, he was just one week shy of his 49th birthday. He was born on February 23, 1977, to Debra Pearce in Durango, Colorado.
As a lifelong resident of SW Colorado, including Durango, Cortez, and Bayfield, Tim enjoyed being outside, fishing, hiking, 4-wheeling,...
Alan Dean Benefiel, Sr.
Feb 13, 2026
Alan Dean Benefiel Sr., beloved father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and lifelong adventurer, passed away peacefully on February 13, 2026, at the age of 96.
Alan was born on June 8, 1929, in Los Angeles, California, and spent his childhood growing up in Pacific Palisades, which at the time was still surrounded by farmland and open land. His early years between the coast...
Benny Lee Cordova
Feb 13, 2026
Benny Lee Cordova born July 21, 1951, in Cortez Colorado. He went to school in Cortez and moved to Oregon for a few years where he met and married his first wife and had 2 children. Benny returned to Cortez and met and married Sondra Hover who had 3 children, which they raised the 5 children as 1 happy unit....
Dr. Forrest Dean Brown
Feb 12, 2026
Dr. Forrest Dean Brown, DDS passed from complications with Lewy body dementia, surrounded by his family, on February 12, 2026.
Dean is remembered as a loving husband, father, grandfather, friend, and mentor to those in both his personal and professional orbit. A man of humor, intellect, business acumen, and quick wit, he lived fully and deliberately. An avid hunter and angler...
Johanna Lenore Fusco
Feb 11, 2026
Johanna “Jo” Lenore (Lenz) Fusco passed away peacefully at home on February 11, 2026, surrounded by family. Jo was born on November 22, 1938, to Jean Elizabeth (Kirby) and Robert Carl Lenz in Omaha, Nebraska. She attended Southeast High School in Kansas City, graduating class of 1956, before moving on to Grinnell College to major in American Studies. After graduating...
Travis Benjamin Roquemore
Feb 9, 2026
Travis Benjamin Roquemore, 36, passed away in his home in Durango, Colorado on February 9, 2026, of complications from epilepsy and CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalitis).
Born on December 22, 1989, in Grapevine, Texas, Travis grew into the kind of man who made people feel safe and cared for simply by being himself. In high school, he earned the nickname Travis “The...
William Crawford Wall
Feb 8, 2026
William Crawford Wall, age 90, passed away on Sunday, February 8, 2026, in Durango, Colorado. He was born in Commerce, Georgia, on July 17, 1935, to Crawford Lorenza Wall and Omie Lucille Smallwood Wall.
He spent his early childhood in Georgia, New Mexico and Arizona. Some of his favorite memories were on the Gila River and Sapillo. He moved to Pagosa...
Carolyn Elaine Dooley
Feb 6, 2026
Carolyn Elaine Dooley passed from this world February 6, 2026, in her home in Durango, Colorado, with her husband of 68 years by her side.
Carolyn was a wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother.
She was born in Illinois in the town of Phillipstown to James Jordan Doty and Esther Allena (Clifford) Doty.
In her 93 years she saw many changes in the world,...
Michael "Mike" Layfield
Feb 1, 2026
Michael “Mike” Layfield was the kind of man people loved immediately—and then loved more deeply the longer they knew him. He was tender-hearted, generous to a fault, quietly accomplished, and guided always by his love for people. To be loved by Mike was to feel encouraged, accepted, and genuinely seen.
Mike was many things over the course of his life: a...
Melody "Dee Dee" Kay Hedin Blevins
Jan 30, 2026
Melody “Dee Dee” Kay Hedin Blevins was born in 1956 to Donna and Leslie Hedin, and she was raised in Bloomington, Minnesota. She passed away on January 30th, 2026, in Durango, Colorado at the age of 69. She was the eldest of three, including her brothers, Brice and Arin Hedin. Melody always loved art and was introduced to drawing at...
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