Athol Eugene "Pete" Reynolds
Marriages
Muriel Eva Barker Reynolds
Obituaries
Eagle Valley Enterprise page 9 - June 7, 2012
Athol Eugene (Pete) Reynolds died peacefully Dec. 3, 2011, in Mountlake Terrace, Wash., and his memorial service will be Saturday, June 16, at Gypsum's Cedar Hill Cemetery at 2 p.m.
Pete was born Aug. 14, 1920, in a dirt-roof log house in Eagle County to Floyd Hayes (Shorty) Reynolds and Alice Ray Rabedew.
The oldest of 11 siblings, Pete was educated in a rural, one-room school house. He started helping his father milk cows at age 6. He had his first job as a helper for a crate maker at age 10 and earned 50 cents a week. He farmed with his parents until age 19. He was employed as a construction laborer, truck driver, rock crusher oiler, and crusher operator at Lake Creek, near Edwards. He also worked at Camp Hale as a drag line oiler and drag line operator and later as a construction superintendent, timber worker, heavy equipment operator, truck driver, farmer and bar tender.
He took advantage of an opportunity to enter the engineering profession with the Colorado Highway Department, where he worked as a stake puncher, rod man and chain man. He learned to use the level and transit, and how to take solar observations for alignment locations and other related duties.
He helped bring electricity to the Eagle River Valley by working as a laborer, digging pole holes, setting anchors and helping to string wire. He learned to climb poles, worked as a line man and then worked with the superintendent doing final checks and helped as he changed the lines, bringing long-awaited electricity to the valley. He entered into the specialty engineering field of soil, concrete and asphalt testing for roadway design and was on the construction crews for the Colorado State Highway Department, Lowry Air Force Base and the Bureaus of Public Roads. He continued in this line of work with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Bureau of Reclamation and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, where he retired in 1986.
Pete enjoyed the outdoors and was an avid rock hound. He explored the world through camping, family vacations and traveled with his wife of 59 years, Muriel. After retirement, and in spite of his vision impairment due to macular degeneration, he wrote his memoirs, titled “Trail of One Life.” He also wrote a series of poetry books titled “Pete's Pebbles.”
Pete met Muriel in 1952 at a square dance in Denver. Over the next 59 years they lived in Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona and Washington state. While in Washington, he established a relationship with the owner of Glean apples, and the fruit made its way back to Colorado in applesauce and was shared with local food banks. When not tending to gardens and cattle ranching, the Reynoldses were off exploring England, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico, Russia and the Cook Islands.
Remembered for his kindness, poetry, knowledge of geology and perseverance, Pete is survived by four brothers: Royce, Donald (Duke), Theodore (Ted) and Felix. He is also survived by his four children; Darlene Wimmer, Glen Reynolds, Kenneth Reynolds and Sherry Anderson; seven grandchildren; LouAnn Smith, Clinton Reynolds, Darla Reynolds, Adam Reynolds, Aubrie Reynolds, Rachel Anderson and Kelly Anderson; and six great-great-grandchildren: Lisa Peters, Carrie Smith, Rebba Reynolds, Jameel Reynolds, Crystal Reynolds and William Reynolds.
He was proceeded in death by his parents, his wife and two sons, Allen Eugene Reynolds and Athold Floyd (Butch) Reynolds.
Memorial donations can be made to the Eagle County Historical Society, POB 192, Eagle, CO 81631.
Vail Daily page A9 - June 15, 2012
Athol Eugene “Pete” Reynolds died peacefully Dec. 3, 2011, in Mountlake Terrace, Wash., and his memorial service will be Saturday at Gypsum's Cedar Hill Cemetery at 2 p.m.
Pete was born Aug. 14, 1920, in a dirt-roof log house in Eagle County to Floyd Hayes (Shorty) Reynolds and Alice Ray Rabedew.
The oldest of 11 siblings, Pete was educated in a rural, one-room school house. He started helping his father milk cows at age 6. He had his first job as a helper for a crate maker at age 10 and earned 50 cents a week. He farmed with his parents until age 19. He was employed as a construction laborer, truck driver, rock crusher oiler, and crusher operator at Lake Creek, near Edwards. He also worked at Camp Hale as a drag line oiler and drag line operator and later as a construction superintendent, timber worker, heavy equipment operator, truck driver, farmer and bar tender.
He took advantage of an opportunity to enter the engineering profession with the Colorado Highway Department, where he worked as a stake puncher, rod man and chain man. He learned to use the level and transit, and how to take solar observations for alignment locations and other related duties.
He helped bring electricity to the Eagle River Valley by working as a laborer, digging pole holes, setting anchors and helping to string wire. He learned to climb poles, worked as a line man and then worked with the superintendent doing final checks and helped as he changed the lines, bringing long-awaited electricity to the valley. He entered into the specialty engineering field of soil, concrete and asphalt testing for roadway design and was on the construction crews for the Colorado State Highway Department, Lowry Air Force Base and the Bureaus of Public Roads. He continued in this line of work with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Bureau of Reclamation and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, where he retired in 1986.
Pete enjoyed the outdoors and was an avid rock hound. He explored the world through camping, family vacations and traveled with his wife of 59 years, Muriel. After retirement, and in spite of his vision impairment due to macular degeneration, he wrote his memoirs, titled “Trail of One Life.” He also wrote a series of poetry books titled “Pete's Pebbles.”
Pete met Muriel in 1952 at a square dance in Denver. Over the next 59 years they lived in Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona and Washington state. While in Washington, he established a relationship with the owner of Glean apples, and the fruit made its way back to Colorado in applesauce and was shared with local food banks. When not tending to gardens and cattle ranching, the Reynoldses were off exploring England, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico, Russia and the Cook Islands.
Remembered for his kindness, poetry, knowledge of geology and perseverance, Pete is survived by four brothers, Royce, Donald (Duke), Theodore (Ted) and Felix. He is also survived by his four children, Darlene Wimmer, Glen Reynolds, Kenneth Reynolds and Sherry Anderson; seven grandchildren, LouAnn Smith, Clinton Reynolds, Darla Reynolds, Adam Reynolds, Aubrie Reynolds, Rachel Anderson and Kelly Anderson; and six great-great-grandchildren, Lisa Peters, Carrie Smith, Rebba Reynolds, Jameel Reynolds, Crystal Reynolds and William Reynolds.
He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife and two sons, Allen Eugene Reynolds and Athold Floyd (Butch) Reynolds.
Memorial donations can be made to the Eagle County Historical Society, P.O. Box 192, Eagle, CO 81631.
www.asacredmoment.com
Athol Eugene "Pete" Reynolds
August 14, 1920 - December 03, 2011
Pete died peacefully on December 3, 2011 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. He was born August 14, 1920 in a dirt-roofed, log house in Eagle County Colorado, to Floyd Hayes “Shorty†Reynolds and Alice Raye Rabedew. The oldest of eleven siblings, Pete was educated in a rural, one-room schoolhouse, and went on to engage varied professional roles in construction, sales, and cattle ranching, eventually retiring from highway engineering and other positions with the federal government. Pete enjoyed the outdoors, was an avid rock hound for many years. He explored the world through camping, family vacations, and travel with his wife of 59 years, Muriel. After retirement, and in spite of his visual impairment due to macular degeneration, he wrote a book about his life; “Trail of One Life,†and went on to write a series of poetry books; “Pete’s Pebbles†volumes one through four.
Pete met “His Lady,†Muriel, in 1952 at a square dance in Denver, Colorado which led to the beginning of their adventures. Over the next 59 years they lived in Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona, and Washington State. Annually, for decades, Pete returned to a familiar apple orchard in Eastern Washington where he had an established relationship with the owner to glean apples. These were brought back for applesauce, apple butter, and sharing with local food banks and others in need. When not tending a garden, cattle ranching, or writing, the two were off exploring England, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico, Russia, and the Cook Islands.
Remembered for his kindness, poetry, knowledge of geology, and perseverance, Pete is survived by
four brothers; Royce E. Reynolds, Donald “Duke†N. Reynolds, Theodore “Ted†Reynolds, and Felix R. Reynolds
four children; Darlene Wimmer, Glen Reynolds, Kenneth Reynolds, and Sherry Anderson
seven grand-children; LouAnn Smith, Clinton Reynolds, Darla Reynolds, Adam Reynolds, Aubrie Reynolds, Rachel Anderson and Kelly Anderson
six great-grand children; Lisa Peters, Carrie Smith, Rebba Reynolds, Jameel Reynolds, Crystal Reynolds, William Reynolds
seven great-great-grand children; Jazmine Peters, Nevaeh Smith, Chloe Peters, Traeh Smith, Jackson Forbes, Braehden Smith, Jace Peters
Donations Information
Pete had requested that donations be made to the Eagle County Historical Society or to the Northshore Senior Center.
Donations Links:
Eagle County Historical Society
Northshore Senior Center
