Richard Eugene Pillmore, 99, a resident of Fort Collins, CO, died on April 12th, 2021. He was born February 24th, 1922, in Boulder, CO, to Edison Anderson Pillmore and Martha Janette Conkey Pillmore, the oldest of four boys. Mr. Pillmore attended Boulder High School, the University of Colorado (BS Zoology/Botany Minor), and the University of Wisconsin (MS Zoology).
In 1944 he married Barbara Gail Crain, who passed away Nov. 6, 1983. He remarried in 1986 to Dorothy Erna Beetle, who passed on March 13, 2005. His brothers, George, Donald, and Charles also predeceased him. He is survived by: his son David G. Pillmore and his wife Andree DuPont, of Longmont, CO; daughter Cynthia K. Pillmore and her husband James Huyvaert, of Firestone, CO; step-daughter Karen Klein and her husband Richard Klein of Pavillion, WY, and their sons David Peter Klein and Jonathan Garrett Klein, and their families. His dog Kenny, a most loyal companion, also survives him.
Mr. Pillmore was a research biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, retiring in 1980. Earlier in his career he worked for the Colorado Game and Fish Department as the SE Colorado Regional Game Manager, and as a wildlife biologist doing research on lungworm infections in Bighorn sheep. Prior to that he had worked for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
He was a World War II veteran, serving in the Merchant Marine after graduating from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, NY, in 1942, and as a Lieutenant (junior grade) in the U.S. Navy Reserve until 1946.
Among his many pursuits he was an instructor and award winning master wood carver (specializing in birds), and a member of the Colorado Carvers Club. He was also a member of a local artists sketch group, former president of the Colorado Wildlife Society, a dedicated bird watcher, a keen badminton player, and a Senior Games participant with numerous medals in both the Summer and Winter games.
Mr. Pillmore had a love of all aspects of the natural world. He was inspired at an early age by Ernest Thompson Seaton, who wrote the Boy Scout Handbook, and in college he was a student of naturalist Aldo Leopold, a leading light in the field of game management. After retirement he continued to pursue his interest in science and life. He wrote an article on bighorn sheep for The Wildlife Professional Magazine when he was 97, and was celebrated as the oldest person to publish in the magazine.
The memorial service will be held at the Foothills Unitarian Church, 1815 Yorktown Ave. Fort Collins, CO, with the date and time to be announced. Memorial contributions can be made to the following: Planned Parenthood, Population Connection, Raptor Society, Wildlife Society, and the Nature Conservancy.
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