Bruce Wilson Obituary

Former Durango resident Bruce Henry Wilson, M.D., died as the result of a fall Monday, Aug. 9, 2010, in Grand Junction. He was 62.

Dr. Wilson was born to Raymond Edgar and Alice Pruden Weil Wilson on Dec. 11, 1947, in Washington, D.C. He grew up in Tucson, Maryland and California.

When he was 10, while vacationing at Vallecito Reservoir with his parents and his sister, he decided that he should move to Durango. After his graduation from Georgetown University, he earned a degree in medicine from the University of Colorado. Dr. Wilson practiced medicine in Durango for 10 years as an internist with Durango Family Medicine. He served on the Colorado Board of Medical Examiners while he was in Durango.

In 1986, Dr. Wilson moved to Grand Junction to become the medical director of Rocky Mountain Health Plans. He served in this capacity for 20 years and met a tremendous number of colleagues and friends, including his future wife, Sue Timm. On July 13, 2001, the couple married outside Ouray.

They had a residence there, and Dr. Wilson loved to escape to the smells, sounds and peace of the small mountain town. The Wilsons' cat Turbo often accompanied them.

"Caring about people was extremely important to Bruce," his family wrote. "Bruce touched the lives of countless people."

During his time in Grand Junction, he served as the first chairman of the board of Hospice and Palliative Care of Western Colorado and was the chairman of both the Colorado Physicians Health Program and the Western Slope Center for Children. He also served on other national boards. Dr. Wilson was also the physician for two Western Slope Honor Flights, an opportunity for World War II veterans to travel to Washington, D.C., to visit the memorials.

The Wilsons were avid travelers. They visited all 50 states, every Canadian province and six continents. Dr. Wilson enjoyed the outdoors, animals, including his cats Seven and Oreo, and his family.

Dr. Wilson is survived by his wife of nine years, Sue Timm, of Grand Junction; sons Peter Raymond Wilson of Durango and John Bruce Wilson of Denver; and sister, Nancy Groenert, of Grand Junction.

A service will be held at 4 p.m. Monday, Aug. 16, 2010, at the Performing Arts Complex at Mesa State College.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to the Western Slope Center for Children, 259 Grand Ave., Grand Junction, CO 81501; or Hospice and Palliative Care of Western Colorado, 3090 B. North 12th St., Grand Junction, CO 81506.