Homer Dobbins Obituary

Durango resident Homer E. Dobbins died Saturday, April 3, 2010, at Four Corners Health Care Center. He was 97.

Mr. Dobbins was born to Sylvia and Joe Dobbins on Oct. 10, 1912, in Santa Rosa, N.M.

When he was young, his family moved in a covered wagon to northern Missouri, where they lived until the early 1920s.

They later moved to Farmington, where Mr. Dobbins graduated from high school in 1931.

From an early age, Mr. Dobbins liked to tinker, and he helped around his father's blacksmith shop, where he learned the

skills of his future trade. After graduation, he worked odd jobs and later at Farmers Supply in Farmington.

In 1939, he married Dorothy Lee Coker and moved to Durango the same day. After a short time with Farmers Supply in

Durango, he began working for Durango Welding.

Mr. Dobbins and Louis Wyman opened their own shop, L & H Welding, which was bought out by Telluride Iron Works. He

worked at T.I.W. until retiring in 1980.

Mr. Dobbins' work can be seen many places in the area. He worked on the head gates of the Vallecito dam, at the Durango

power plant and built leaching baskets for uranium enrichment. He built and installed handrails for the first buildings

at Fort Lewis College when it moved into town,

and he built a custom wood stove and helped fabricate the towers for the first ski lift at Purgatory Ski Area. Many

hours were spent helping keep the Denver & Rio Grande Narrow Gauge Railroad trains running.

Mr. Dobbins often talked about the big Navy ships, and a highlight after retiring was a daylong below-deck tour of the

battleship USS Alabama at Battleship Park on Mobile Bay in Alabama.

The Dobbinses joined First Baptist Church of Durango shortly after they arrived in Durango. Mr. Dobbins was a church

trustee for many years.

Mr. Dobbins was among a small group of men who established the Whispering Pines Bible Camp in the woods above Trimble

Hot Springs.

He always loved the mountains and enjoyed jeeping and looking at the old mines and mills in the area. He found rocks

for the many retaining walls built around his home on these excursions.

Mr. Dobbins was preceded in death by his wife of 68 years, Dorothy Dobbins.

He is survived by his daughter, Elaine Bowden, of Durango; son, Marvin Dobbins, of Durango; four grandchildren; three

great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Cremation will occur. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, April 15, 2010, at First Baptist Church of

Durango. The Rev. Jeff Dobesh will officiate.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the First Baptist Church Building Fund, 322 E. 11th St.,

Durango, CO 81301.