Robert McCoy Obituary

Robert Leamon McCoy, a lifelong resident of the Pine River Valley, died at his Bayfield home Tuesday, May 28, 2013, from cancer. He was 85.

Mr. McCoy was born Oct. 29, 1927, in La Plata, N.M.

He met Ruby Lenore Tangreen while working at Redd Ranches in La Sal, Utah. They married June 29, 1950, in Aztec and moved soon after to the ranch he purchased near Bayfield. They raised six children there. They lived on the ranch throughout a 62-year marriage that ended with her death in 2012.

Mr. McCoy bought his first registered Hereford heifer as a young boy, starting a long-term interest in Hereford cattle. He also worked at the Bayfield Conoco for a number of years.

His family said he made many friends selling bulls, raising quarter horses, training cutting horses and riding mules. Mr. McCoy loved driving his team of mules hooked to a wagon he restored in parades and shows.

He enjoyed hunting and spending time in the woods with his family and friends. He was a great storyteller and loved to visit with people.

He is survived by his sons, Bobby McCoy of Bayfield and Jim McCoy of Craig; daughters, Pat McCoy of Hereford, Texas, Evelyn Risen of Durango, Sue Decker of La Plata, N.M., and Julie Baird of Bayfield; and 19 grandchildren and 32 great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be at 11 a.m., Saturday, June 8, 2013, at the Bayfield Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1690 U.S. Highway 160B. Burial will be at Pine River Cemetery in Bayfield.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the American Cancer Society.