Wayne Carruthers

"Sure glad you got to see me." Wayne Carruthers, 89, passed away on May 30, 2015, in his hometown Holyoke, CO. He is survived by his wife of 70+ years, Lois; sons Perry & wife Karen of Holyoke, CO, Randy & wife Delna of Sterling, CO; and daughter-in-law Christine Carruthers of Evergreen, CO. He enjoyed 9 grandchildren and 16 great grandchildren. L. Wayne was preceded in death by his parents, Lewis & Bertha; brothers Van, Dale, & Dennis; sister, Ida; his loving son, Gail; and 3 grandchildren. Lewis Wayne Carruthers was born August 11, 1925, in Holyoke, CO, to Lewis & Bertha Carruthers. He grew up on the family ranch south of Holyoke. After graduating from Wray High School, he married his high school sweetheart Lois Brophy on June 16, 1944. They moved to Estes Park, CO, where he worked in the building of the Moffit Tunnel. After just 6 months he knew they belonged back in the sand hills farming and ranching with family. They moved back to Holyoke where he partnered with his brothers Van and Dale operating a farming & cattle operation until he retired in the 90's. Wayne was a very talented welder, machinist, and inventor. He designed and built many farm implements and machines; probably his proudest creation was a self-propelled bale stacker. It plucked hay bales from the field and dropped them onto the truck bed, where a crew of 2 such as nephew Kent and son Perry would retrieve and position the bales into a perfect stack to be unloaded mechanically at another location. When he wasn't working, which was not often, he had a passion for all types of hunting, especially coyotes in the sand hills or elk in the Colorado Rockies. He was proud of the black bear he scored and had made into a rug that the kids have enjoyed ever since. Later in life he came to enjoy a game of golf with his buddies. Visitation will be Tuesday, June 2, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Baucke Funeral Home, 1220 SW Interocean Ave, Holyoke, CO. A memorial service will be held on June 3 at 10:30 a.m. at Baucke Funeral Home Chapel with Pastor Max Hines officiating with graveside service to follow at Holyoke Cemetery. Contributions to the L. Wayne Memorial Fund will be forwarded to the Alzheimer Association.