ROBERT "GRANT" BRYAN
Obituaries
Grand Junction Daily Sentinel page 7B - June 16, 2008
Grand Junction Free Press page 12 - June 18, 2008
Steamboat Pilot - June 29, 2008
Grant Bryan died June 13, 2008, at the VA Hospital in Grand Junction. He was 73.
Grant was born April 4, 1935, to Thomas and Marjorie (Crowley) Bryan in Kremmling. His mother was on a train to Denver from Steamboat Springs when the train had to make a sudden stop in Kremmling so Grant could make his entrance. He was born a few doors away from the train station in a log cabin. He grew up in Steamboat Springs with six sisters and one brother.
At the age of 15, the wandering genes kicked in again, and he decided to ride barebacks and saddlebroncs in the rodeo. During his time in the rodeo, he visited places including Phoenix; Memphis, Tenn.; Tucson, Ariz.; Cheyenne, Wyo.; El Paso, Texas; Fort Worth, Texas; and Denver, to name a few. In 1954, he won the bareback division in Denver, competing against 106 other contestants. In 1955, Grant went on to win the Saddlebronc Championship in Madison Square Garden in New York. He was a member of the American Cowboy Association and the Rodeo Cowboy Association based out of Denver.
The traveling did not stop. In 1958, Grant joined the U.S. Marines in the Air Wing Division. During his time in the military, Grant was the Sixth Fleet champion for cribbage and had the opportunity to fly from ship to ship to engage in these competitions. He played in Barcelona, Spain and Athens. During Grant's time in the military, he picked up Alan Shepard, Gus Grissom and John Glenn and took them to the USS Lake Champlain, USS Randolph and the USS Enterprise, respectively.
Grant is survived by his sisters, Gretchen Johnson of Palisade; Lurae Vanek of Ithaca, N.Y.; and Betty Bershinsky of Hartshorne, Okla.; and many nieces and nephews.
A celebration of life was held June 16 at the Snell-McLean Funeral Home in Palisade.
Memorial contributions can be made to the DAV 2121 North Ave., Grand Junction, CO 81501.
