Eldon Martin Parrish

Eldon Martin Parrish, 64, of Longmont, Colorado, passed away on Tuesday, April 26, 2011, at Mesa Vista Nursing Home in Boulder, Colorado. He was born at Platte County Memorial Hospital in Wheatland, Wyoming on March 29, 1947, to Martin Lewis and Vera Marie Parrish. He was the youngest of their three sons. In his early years, Eldon grew up on a farm near Wheatland, Wyoming with his two older brothers, Hartley and Clarence. He attended elementary through high school in Wheatland and graduated from Wheatland High School in 1965. By 1966, he met his future wife, Cheri Catherine Bourgeois on Fourth of July in Guernsey, Wyoming. They were later engaged and planned to marry after her graduation in 1967. However, their plans were put on hold when he was drafted into the Armed Services during the Vietnam War in 1967.There, he served as a 1st lieutenant in the Army as an ambulance and support vehicle mechanic. One of his bravest moments was when he retrieved a downed pharmaceutical supplies truck while under enemy fire and received a citation for his actions.After being honorably discharged, he returned to Wheatland and married Cheri on April 19, 1969, at the Church of Our Saviour in Hartville, Wyoming. They remained in Wyoming, except for a short time in Nebraska before moving to Colorado after the birth of their daughter, Melinda, in which they made Longmont, Colorado their permanent home.Eldon was passionate about his work in the manufacturing field which spanned over 40 years. He specialized in the trades of machinist work, tool and die and mold production. Throughout his career his main places of work included; Lukens Tool and Die of Wheatland, Wyoming and Gerring Nebraska, Rosebud Coal Company of Hanna Wyoming, WYOTT of Cheyenne, Wyoming, Acurat Plastics and Avedon Engineering, both of Longmont, Colorado. He is survived by his wife, Cheri; his daughter, Melinda and son-in-law, Kevin Crafts; his brothers and sisters-in-law, Clarence Barney and Diane Parrish of Douglas, WY and Hartley and Jean Parrish of Winnemucca, NV; his sisters-in-law and brother-in-law, Stacey and Doug Jackson of Rapid City, SD and Troi Fritzler of Guernsey, WY; as well as, five nieces and two nephews and a host of extended family and friends.The memorial will be held at 5:30 PM on Sunday, July 10, 2011 at the Cheyenne-Kiwanis House at Lions Park in Cheyenne, WY, 4603 North Lions Drive. There will be a pot luck dinner, so if you wish to bring food, etc., please arrive by 4:30PM (Refrigeration and warming units are available).