Obituary: Davie Dean Robertson

Davie Dean Robertson, 82, passed away on Feb. 11, 2014, at Rangely District Hospital in Rangely, Colo., after a year of severe illness. Dave was born Sept. 27, 1931, at the Fisher Ranch east of Hugo, Colo., to Herschel and Pauline (Sterling) Robertson.
Dave graduated from Hugo High School in 1950, and, in March 1951, he enlisted in the United States Army. After training, he was assigned to Army ordnance at Fort Richardson near Anchorage, Alaska.
After Dave was discharged, he attended Otero Junior College in La Junta, Colo., earning his associate’s degree, and he was graduated from the University of Colorado in 1958 with a bachelor of science degree with a major in accounting.
On Dec. 6, 1958, Dave married Cheryl Kirby, whom he met in college. He worked for a certified public accounting firm in Greeley, Colo., for five years. In 1963, the family moved to Rangely and went into the livestock business with Cheryl’s parents and Twin Buttes Ranch Co. was formed.
Family and the ranch were his life. Over the years, additional acreages and grazing permits were added to the business and he never quit seeking knowledge. He studied the soils, learning all the grasses, plants and shrubs particular to an area and kept a chart of the precipitation in order to better the range. One of his missions in life was to leave the land in better condition than he found it.
The last few years he went through many of “The Great Courses” lectures and books on topics covering the U.S. Constitution, early history and finance. Reading was his hobby.
Dave was a member of the first Rio Blanco County Planning Commission, serving for eight years, most of that time as chairman. He was on the board of directors of the Douglas Creek Soil Conservation District and was instrumental in helping establish the Upper Colorado Environmental Plant Center at Meeker. He served on the board of directors of the Rifle Production Credit Association until its reorganization in 1985. He belonged to the Rio Blanco County Cattlemen’s Association, the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association, The National Cattlemen’s Association, R-Calf and the Society to Range Management.
Dave and his family were honored in 1987 as Colorado Hereford Breeder of the Year by the Colorado Hereford Association.
Dave is survived: his wife, Cheryl; two sons, Scott (Mikki) Robertson and Owen (Michelle) Robertson of Rangely; one daughter, Karen (Troy) Latham of Mack, Colo.; six grandchildren, Mandi Hirsch, Tyler Robertson, Rayna Robertson, Afton Robertson, Aren Robertson, and Kersi Latham; one brother, Steve (Judy) Robertson of Greeley, Co; three sisters, Betty Kaufman of Littleton, Colo., Della (Don) Kuntson of Genoa, Colo., and Janie VanDerSchouw of Leadville, Colo.; and sister-in-law, Carol Robertson of Agate, Colo.
Funeral services were conducted at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2014 at the First Baptist Church in Rangely. Viewing was held from 9:30 a.m. until the service. Burial was held in Rangely Cemetery with military honors. Services have been entrusted to Blackburn Meeker, Rangely and Vernal Mortuaries.
Contributions in Dave’s name may be made to a memorial fund at the First National Bank of the Rockies for T-Cell lymphoma cancer research.