Duane Ronald Chicoine

Duane Chicoine passed away peacefully on the morning of January 5 in Boulder, Colorado. He lived a life defined by faith, love, and integrity.

He was born to Edgar Chicoine and Laura Montagne in Sioux City, Iowa, on July 22, 1926. Duane descended from a long line of French Canadians dating back to the founding of Quebec and Montreal.

He grew up in the Depression, surrounded by love while his family struggled with the times. The Depression ended for the family when they settled in Lansing, Michigan, in 1936. They relocated to Decatur, Illinois, in 1940, where Duane graduated from St. Teresa High School in 1943.

Duane began college at the University of Illinois in the fall of 1943. During his sophomore year, the U.S. Navy sent Duane to Columbia University, the flagship for its vaunted V-12 officer’s program. He went on active duty in July 1944. He met Beatrice DeNardis, the love of his life, at a dance at Holy Innocents Church in midtown Manhattan in 1945, and neither again dated anyone else.

Duane graduated from Columbia in June 1946. He received his officer’s commission in the U.S. Navy and, the war being over, went on inactive duty. He subsequently served in the Naval Reserve from the outbreak of the Korean War until 1955. He went to work in Chicago and regularly hitchhiked to New York City to see Beatrice.

Duane and Beatrice married on July 12, 1947 at Church of the Ascension in Rego Park, Queens. Neither was quite 21 years of age. They settled in Decatur, Illinois, where they raised their four children, Stephen, Susan, Diane, and Jeffrey. Duane worked for the A.E. Staley Manufacturing as a mechanical engineer and retired as Manager of Mechanical and Civil Engineering in 1987. Du and Bea moved to Boulder, Colorado in 1989. They spent many years hiking in the Rocky Mountains. They traveled the world. Their greatest joy came from their ten grandchildren and, most recently, a great-granddaughter.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, January 8, 2011 at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church. Interment will follow at Sacred Heart of Mary Cemetery. Donations may be made in memoriam to the Rocky Mountain Cancer Center Foundation, c/o Stephanie Schulman, 1161 South Vivian St., Lakewood, CO 80228.

Please share thoughts, memories, and condolences with Duane’s family at www.cristmortuary.com