Damon C. Craft

September 02, 1969 - August 14th, 2010

Damon died unexpectedly of a heart attack at 40 years old in Boulder, CO on August 14th, 2010.

Damon was born September 2nd, 1969 in Boulder Colorado to parents Darryl and Sally Craft. He is survived by his mother, Sally Craft, Sister Cori Craft, and Grandmother Jessie Craft.

Damon graduated from Boulder High School in 1988, where during his Senior year he was elected to the All-State Football Team as an Offensive Tackle. He briefly accepted a football scholarship to Long Beach College in CA after graduating from Boulder High, but transferred back to Colorado where he earned a BA in Sociology from the University of Colorado, and a MA in Human Resources Education from Colorado State University.

Damon spent his professional career in many industries, including the Boulder Department of Justice, Studio facilities management, Human Resources Management, Entertainment Management, and most recently in Sales Management for Comstor in Louisville, CO. Throughout his lifetime he lived in many locations within Colorado, California and Nevada.

Damon was never married, although he hoped to be one day and had no children that he knew of. He was preparing to buy his first house at the end of 2010.

He had many destinations he planned to travel to, and just recently had acquired his first passport. He was in the process of making plans to go to the Burning Man Festival for his upcoming birthday with his dear and longtime friend Danny Abila before his unexpected death.

He was an accomplished runner, running his first race at the age of 10 (Bolder Boulder) and completed races and marathons such as the Pikes Peak Ascent, Omaha Marathon, Lake Tahoe Marathon, and Pueblo Marathon in past years.

Damon lived his life by the guideline to set no limits and his primary goal was fun in any situation, and that is what drew people to him. He lived his life the way he wanted to live it, not the way others believed it should be run. He is to be admired for the chances he took, sometimes without regard for the consequences. He was impulsive, and liked to do the unexpected, such as when he suddenly quit his successful job at MCI/Worldcom and moved to Las Vegas to look for another career, much to the shock of his family.

Damon had several hobbies. He could be caught listening to Elvis music and collecting Elvis paraphernalia. He was a history buff, and voraciously read books and watched documentaries on stories about WW1 and WW2. One of his favorite series was the Band of Brothers, to which he subjected his family to every Thanksgiving. He loved to Golf and participated in many tournaments and events with friends around the U.S. He maintained a collection of golf caps from every course he had played. He also adored his cat Steve, whom he rescued from the streets, and raised until he was 13 years old. Steve passed earlier this year in March of 2010 of kidney complications.

His family can attest that he looked forward to Thanksgiving, Christmas and birthdays, where he was thoughtful and giving. Damon was a quick witted and intelligent individual with a love of life. He never knew an enemy, and could talk your ear off since the day he was born. He will be remembered for being a true friend, and standing up for the underdog, or anyone who he felt was mistreated. He made a point to keep in touch with old friends, and maintained relationships with many friends, many of them whom he had grown up with in Lyons and Boulder, and who will miss him dearly.

Thank you to Michael Greenwood at Crist Mortuary for helping to provide Damon and his family with a compassionate environment in which to plan a service where we can freely share our thoughts with family and friends regarding the special person that Damon was. Thanks also to good friends who reached out to provide support and to help us through these tasks during an incredibly difficult time.

He turned out perfectly, according to his mother. We are so proud of him, and love him very much. The world is left a darker place without Damon to provide love, humor and life to our mundane lives.

In a note recently found in his belongings, he wrote that he would want to be remembered as the warm, caring and happy person, and to that description we can attest.

Crist Mortuary @ 3395 Penrose Place in Boulder, CO 80301 (303) 442 4448, will be handling Damon’s arrangements, and orchestrating the celebration of his life where his friends and family will share stories and legendary tales of Damon’s shenanigans at North Boulder Park at 9:30 am, Saturday, August 21st. A wake will follow at the Elks Club 3975 28th St., Boulder, CO 80301 from 11:00am-1:00pm, where we will celebrate and show pictures of Damon throughout life as well as videos he recently took of his adventures. Close friend Andrew Fuhrer will be officiating the event and eulogies will be delivered by Andrew, his sister and good friend Dan Abila. After the scheduled tributes are given, we will encourage any friend of Damon’s to take the mic and share a meaningful or fun story of his life.

Arrangements under the direction of Crist Mortuary, Boulder, CO.