Obituary: Nelma Evelyn Striegel

Nelma Evelyn Striegel
Sept. 15, 1913 ~ June 20, 2008
Nelma Evelyn Proctor was born in Fredonia, Kan., Sept. 15, 1913, to Grace Enda Bloomingdale Proctor and George Ellis Proctor.
She was their firstborn child and enjoyed spending time with her two younger brothers, Phillip and George.
Her early years of education were spent in Eldorado and Witchita, Kan. She was graduated in 1932 in Montezuma, Kan.
One night while on a date at a motion picture show, she caught the eye of another man. Shortly thereafter she was attending a traveling medicine show when this young man introduced himself as Wayde Striegel and claimed to be a friend of her uncle. This young man was a member of the Civil Contractors Corps and all young ladies had been warned to stay away from these men. When she tried to remain at arm’s length from this man, he offered to present her with a letter of recommendation from her uncle. Before long he returned with the promised letter, which stated he was a fine man who could really play baseball. They were married April 30, 1936 in Yates, Kan.
They moved from Wichita to Uravan and Nucla, Colo., while Wayde worked in the uranium mines and Nelma began raising the first two of their five children, Marilyn and Larry (Bud). When World War II began, they moved to Long Beach, Calif., to be near family.
During the spring of 1945, the family loaded all of their belonging and headed for Colorado where there was rumored to be plenty of job opportunities. Leaving behind their quaint little home in beautiful Long Beach, they headed for a place called Rangely, Colo.
The living conditions were slightly different in Rangely. Their tiny home had no running water, the streets were only dirt roads and the sidewalks were made of wood. She was remarkable in her ability to help her husband operate the business side of a pipeline company, run a household, pull her children from knee deep mud, and still enjoy the challenge of planting flowers in her yard. In 1946, just one year after moving to Rangely, her daughter Marilyn died after a very brief illness. Their family continued to expand and Douglas (Doug), Cheryl (Cheri) and Randall (Randy) soon added to her joy. She and Wayde continued to raise their family in Rangely and called it home even after their retirement in 1979 when they moved to Grand Junction, Colo. The family business they sacrificed for is still in operation today and has now entered its fourth generation.
After Wayde passed away in 1981, Nelma continued to live in Grand Junction and enjoyed doing volunteer work until ­1990, when she moved to Fort Collins to be near her daughter. In 1996, she returned to Grand Junction until returning to Fort Collins for health reasons.
She remained close to her family of 15 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren and one great-great grandchild. She loved watching her family grow up. All potential new additions to the family were required to pass the “Grandma Striegel Test”. This included all prospective fiances and new baby additions. There is, however, no record of any prospective family members not passing this test. It can be said that there were very few people she met that she didn’t like. She was a great listener and knew just when and how to give advice. She maintained her wonderful sense of humor until the day she, as she put it, “Got on the bus that took her to the next stop.”
She passed away peacefully on the evening of June 20, 2008, at the home of her daughter surrounded by her family. Following her very specific instructions, a private family graveside service was held in Rangely, Colo., on Thursday, June 26, 2008, where she was laid to rest next to her husband. A memorial service was held at 2 p.m. on July 5, 2008, at the Campbell Creek Ranch in Meeker, Colo., for family and friends.
Surviving her are her children Bud and June Striegel of Rangely, Cheryl and Ralph Olson of Fort Collins, Randy and Diane Striegel of Lyman, Wyo., Wes and Merry Lynn Lifferth of Payson, Utah, her brother Phillip Proctor of San Diego, Calif., her grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great grandchild and many nieces and nephews. Preceding her in death are her husband Wayde, daughter Marilyn, son Douglas, grandson Joshua and brother George.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in her name to Hospice of Larimer County, 305 Carpenter Rd., Fort Collins, Colo., 80525 or as she had asked, just do a kind deed for a stranger in remembrance of her.