Elbert Redford Obituary

Elbert (Eb) H. Redford passed away on June 14, 2024, after a long battle with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP). He died peacefully at home in Durango, Colorado, surrounded by family. Eb was born July 3, 1940 in Grass Valley, California, to Milton and Gwen (Houghton) Redford. Eb grew up in Ogden, Utah where he graduated from high school and earned a two-year degree in Electronics from Weber College before transferring to New Mexico State University where he worked the graveyard shift at White Sands Missile Range. Eb and Kathy (K) Barlow met in a mathematics class in 1964 and were married on June 5, 1965, in Taos, New Mexico. After both graduated with BS degrees in Mathematics, they moved to New Jersey where Eb started working at Bell Labs while attending New York University. He completed his Master's Degree in Computer Science in 1970. Soon after, they purchased an 1890's farm house in Shrewsbury, New Jersey where their two children grew up amid the chaos of major remodels, with Eb doing most of the work. Somehow time was found for family travel. There are many fond memories of canoeing in the Jersey Pine Barrens, backpacking and cross-country skiing in the Adirondacks, long drives to visit relatives in New Mexico, and hiking hut-to-hut in the Alps. Eb loved the outdoors and began hiking and rock climbing in high school. During college, he was one of five Americans selected to join an equal number of Soviet and Chinese climbers to take part in the Mt Everest International Peace Climb in 1990. His group was not expected to summit, but Eb did reach base camp 3 at 21,000 feet. During his career of over 50 years, Eb worked in Information Systems and Corporate Material Management for major corporations. After retiring, he started his own consulting business. Back in the Southwest after more than 30 years, all of Eb's passions came together. He and K built their dream home, he took up skiing again, and used his IT and construction experience to support both their local community of Falls Creek Ranch and the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Durango. A celebration of life will be held at a future date. More information can be found on Legacy.com or www.hoodmortuary.com