Mac McKinney McCord

Mac was born in Lafayette, IN on 1 August 1948. Growing up in the low, flat lands of Indiana and Missouri, Mac fell in love with the Rocky Mountains during childhood trips, and his passion for the high country never left him.

After moving to the Colorado Springs area, Mac began working for Western Forge, a long-time tool manufacturer that was a cornerstone of Colorado Springs industry. Mac also worked shifts at the Falcon Meadows Campground, owned by his sister and brother-in-law, Dee and Jim Ozburn. Even after retiring from more than four decades working at Western Forge, Mac continued to pick up a weekly shift behind the register as long as he was able.

Mac was a long-time member of Highland Park Baptist Church. Through a church friend, Mac found his soulmate, Christine Lehrer, in 1989. They were married near one of his favorite camping areas in the mountains west of Colorado Springs. Mac and Chris were inseparable companions, adventuring across the western US with their sons, Phillip and Daniel. The family lived in a log cabin-style home in the Black Forest on 10-acres of land – Mac’s own small slice of paradise.

Mac loved open spaces, thin high-elevation air, and the beauty of the mountains. He traveled thousands of miles exploring the backroads, ghost towns, and rugged passes of his beloved state. There was hardly a niche, valley, peak, or pass with which he was not familiar, and he could fill hours retracing paths he had taken on a large wall map of Colorado that hung for years in his office. He taught his sons to ride dirt bikes, gave ATV rides to his grandchildren, took his family camping and off-roading in some of the most beautiful places on Earth, and carried with him a constant appreciation for the wonders of the world around him.

Mac was enthralled with the history of the United States, particularly the West. He was also a great appreciator of classical music, which made for an epic soundtrack to many of the far-ranging family vacations he led off-roading in the Rockies. He embodied the grit, steadfastness, determination, and unflinching faith of the pioneers whose histories he loved.

Mac was a man of profound faith in the Lord. He was unfailingly kind to his fellow man, and he relished the opportunity to help those around him. Even in his moments of greatest struggle and sadness, he showed grace and forgiveness to those who had wronged him. He greeted everyone he met with a firm handshake and beaming smile. He could make a friend out of a complete stranger while waiting 5 minutes in line at the grocery store. He was always at home among his friends and family, always at ease among the mountain peaks and wild frontier, and always ready to tell a story whose thread ranged as far and wide as his travels had taken him.

Mac was preceded in death by his wife, and he is survived by his sons, Phillip and Daniel, and five grandchildren.

A Memorial Service to celebrate Mac's life will be held on Saturday, November 22, 2025 at 10:30AM at First Baptist Church, 317 East Kiowa Street, Colorado Springs, CO 80903. A Reception is to follow.