Calvin Smith Obituary

Calvin Leroy Smith, passed away peacefully, at home on May 27, 2016 at the age of 81. "Cal" was born in Perryton, Texas on July 16, 1934 to Andrew and Eula Smith. He was the third of seven children. He spent his youth years picking cotton and farming in Texas, Oklahoma and California, as well as learning carpentry skills from an uncle in the Salton Sea area. Cal eventually found his way to Colorado where he met his lovely wife-to-be Cecelia Cundiff. They were married in 1953. After helping remodel the Durango-Silverton Train Station, he began work with VCA in 1953 until it closed down. After a quick stint as a lift operator at Purgatory, Cal ventured into general contracting, first working with Bill Kirkham. They worked on several houses in the Vallecito area and eventually beginning his own family business, C. Smith Construction with his wife and son, Keith. Cal retired in 2004.

Cal and Cecelia have four children: Joan Schumacher (Pat) of Durango; Carla Kimball (Danny) of Kirtland, New Mexico; Diana Piccoli (Jim) of Bayfield; and Keith Smith (Teri) of Bayfield. He has 10 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren. Cal's greatest joy was to get as many of his family members together, be it for branding cattle, bucking hay or holiday celebrations and family milestones. Anyone dropping by the family ranch was immediately embraced into Cal's family. He always enjoyed showing new folks his many treasures, including his prized '37 Ford pickup (which was rebuilt from the ground up with the help of his grandchildren), a '77 Ford Bronco, and assorted antique and collector-grade firearms. A tour of the ranch was not complete until he fired up his 8N Ford tractor (always on the first attempt!). One of his trademarks, both attesting to his ingenuity and generosity, was the many turtle stools he made for friends and family.

Cremation has occurred, but a celebration of life will be held at 11:00AM on Saturday, June 4, 2016 at the Cundiff Family Home Place at 6071 C.R. 502, Bayfield, Colorado.