Memorable conversations with Doris Layton

MEEKER I There is something calming about taking time to converse in this increasingly busy world. Doris Layton is a woman who is willing to take the time. She always has a smile on her face and something positive to say in her own easy-talking way.
The companionship she and her husband built on a foundation of communication was strong, and with added humor and kindness resulted in a marriage that lasted more than 60 years. Doris married George Layton on Oct. 7, 1948, after he was graduated from Rio Blanco High School in 1942 and drafted into the U.S. Army for service in World War II. When he came home to Meeker he joined Doris Smallwood in a marriage that endured the test of time. The couple had three children, Nolan Layton and Mary Herman both of Meeker, and Lyle Layton of New Castle; four grandchildren, Holly Herman, Larry, Sherry and Dorey; and three great-grandchildren.
Through their many years of marriage George and Doris enjoyed the ranching lifestyle. George was a rodeo cowboy. He participated in bareback riding, bull riding, team and calf roping, as well as horse racing. He was once the Western Slope Rodeo Association’s bareback champion. He served on the WREA and Pioneers hospital boards and was known for his ability to not only do well in rodeo events but always work his cattle ranch.
Their cowboy lifestyle created many fond memories. George once broke his leg while rodeoing and had a cast from his hip to his ankle. He rode the Miller Creek Ditch at the time and found the long ride very difficult with the cast. He asked Doris to go to the shop for the necessary tools to cut his cast off. No doubt this is just one of many stories about the type of life the Laytons led – willing to do whatever it took to get the work done.
George and Doris enjoyed their mesa ranch above Meeker and raised Quarter horses in the 1950’s and ‘60s. Doris enjoyed the horses as much as George and spent endless hours training alongside her husband.
Her son Lyle remembers‚ “She was out there with Dad working, training horses and delivering calves.” The ranch and family was her profession.
They were known as good ranchers and great neighbors, a quality dear to their hearts. People who knew them well spoke of them as great friends who shared a great sense of humor. Anyone who encountered them remembers the very unique, positive pace to their conversations – heartfelt and seldom about themselves. They were always concerned about the well-being of others and unselfishly turned the topic of conversation to the other party.
Doris attends the Chuckwagon lunch nearly every day at noon and the smile beneath her cowboy hat makes the hour more than just a meal. She simply appreciates people and the opportunity to talk and laugh together, just as she always has.