Donald Mitchell Piburn

Don Piburn, 94, a longtime Boulder resident, passed away on Friday, March 13, 2015 at his Loveland home, surrounded by loved ones, including his wife of 73 years. He was born on June 29, 1920, at his family’s farm near Malvern, Iowa, where he lived most of his childhood. His parents were Harry and Fern (Mitchell) Piburn.

While a young soda jerk at Jay’s Drug Store in Shenandoah, Iowa, he met a local farm girl, Kay Stewart. Two years later, about a month after Pearl Harbor, the young Iowa farm girl took a train to Los Angeles to marry the soda jerk who was then helping build airplanes for the war effort. Don and Kay were married on January 11, 1942.

The couple lived in Los Angeles until Don was assigned to the Occupying Forces in Germany after World War II. Upon his return, the couple and their first son, Mike, moved to Bellevue, Nebraska. In 1958 the couple and their two sons moved to Boulder, Colorado, where they lived until 2010, the year the couple moved to Loveland.

A longtime body-and-fender man, Don was also a prolific artist, gracing their home and the homes of many family and friends with oil paintings of landscapes, Indian chieftain portraits and modern art, among other art forms. He was also a freelance political cartoonist for the Boulder Daily Camera in the 1960-70s.

A great joy for Don and Kay was hosting relatives in their Boulder home and taking day trips and vacations throughout the Rocky Mountains. The couple also spent many summer days at their cabin near Grand Lake, Colorado.

Don is survived by his wife, Kay; sons Mike (Pat) Piburn of Carbondale, Colorado, and Gregg (Sherrie) of Loveland; grandchildren Dan (Giselle) Piburn of Santa Fe, Doug (Gayle) Piburn of Los Angeles, Corlet (Mark) Boelman of Loveland, Alyse Piburn of Frisco, Colorado, and Bret (Shante) Piburn of Havelock, North Carolina; and great-grandchildren Coleman and Amelie Piburn of Santa Fe, Stella, Henning and Rowley Piburn of Los Angeles, and Kyle and Serenity Boelman of Loveland. He was preceded in death by his parents and two brothers, Ed and Marv Piburn.

A Memorial Service will be held at Lifespring Covenant Church (743 S. Dotsero Drive, Loveland) at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 21, 2015. Eventually Don and Kay’s ashes will be buried at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver. In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to Halcyon Hospice or The Deacons Fund at the First Presbyterian Church in Boulder, in care of Allnutt Funeral Home. Go to www.allnutt.com to send condolences.