George Winters Thurston
Marriages
Ella Comries - 1927
Preceded in Death
Dollie Brooks - December 31, 1963
Burial Details
Obituaries
Eagle Valley Enterprise page 7 - March 14, 2002
George Thurston, 95, died at the Glen Valley Nursing Home in Glenwood Springs on Monday March 11.
A graveside service will be held at 1 p.m., Thursday at Hillcrest Cemetery in Carbondale.
He was born April 17, 1906 in Carbondale, to William and Jessie Thurston.
George, a Glenwood resident for 54 years, graduated from Carbondale High School in 1925.
He joined the Masonic Lodge in 1940 and was an active honorary lifetime member, achieving certificate of letter-perfect lectures.
He married Ella Comries in 1927, who preceded him in death in 1947. George remarried, to Dollie Brooks, on December 31, 1963.
A man of many talents, George lived his early years in a variety of places from Chicago, California, Carbondale, Fort Collins, Monte Vista, and Grand Junction before settling in Glenwood Springs.
His jobs included building trails for the Forest Service as well as stocking fish in Crystal River Lake, surveying for the Bureau of Land Management, chauffeuring for a famous silent movie actress and various tunnel jobs, including the Water Diversion Tunnel in Lincoln Gulch above Aspen.
George was best known as the general manager of Holy Cross Electric from 1940-1975, the longest-term manager with the Rural Electric Association.
George was instrumental in providing the first electrical service to a large portion of the Garfield, Pitkin, and Eagle Counties including Vail.
George and Dollie enjoyed spending time in Fulford at their cabin.
Family and friends might say they remember George as the man who learned to water sky at the age of 58 in Glenwood Canyon, drove a hot red Jeep smoking his cigar and playing Elvis Presley tapes.
"Patience and Perseverance Conquereth all things", a motto written about George from high school, best describes how he lived his life.
In addition to his first wife, Ella, his parents, a daughter, Eileen Thurston, and two brothers, Harold and Dow Thurston, precede George in death.
He is survived by his wife Dollie, of 38 years; daughter Karen Haff (Richard) of Glenwood; Stepson, Larry Brooks of Gypsuml 4 grandchildren; 2 great children and one niece and nephew.
The family is requesting those wishing to make donations send them to Roaring Fork Hospice at PO Box 1970, Glenwood Springs, CO 81602.
Farnum Holt Funeral Home of Glenwood Springs, Colorado is in charge of the arrangements.
Glenwood Springs Post Independent page A10, A11 - May 10, 2002
