Larry was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado to Bertha and Dewey Carnahan on August 10, 1939. He was the youngest of three children and doted on by two sisters, Alice and Norma. Larry graduated from Kiowa High School in 1957 and went on to study Animal Science at Colorado State University (CSU) where he graduated in 1963.
In 1961, Larry met Carol McClure at CSU at a fraternity party and their 60-year love story began. They were married in 1963 and had three children, Joy, Jacki and Dan.
Following college, Larry had several jobs in finance before forming his own mortgage banking firm which remained his career until 2022. Larry was always passionate about his work, but his greatest joy was the countless leadership roles he had with 4H and the Douglas County Fair. This was embedded early in his life growing up on the family cattle ranch in Kiowa, Colorado, which was homesteaded in 1862 and remains family owned and operated today. The ranch was always a significant part of Larry’s life and a place where he derived great joy.
He loved sharing this joy with others as he would teach and mentor young people as a 4H leader, having participated himself for 10 years in Kiowa and participating on the CSU livestock judging team, where the team earned top honors at the National Western Stock Show in 1961. As a parent, Larry became an assistant leader for the Douglas County Livestock Judging Club and became the coach in 1979, a role he continued until 1993. Larry loved his livestock judging teams and together they earned state championships and placed in the top 10 nationally. The teams also did dairy judging and won the national contest in 1982.
Larry served on the Douglas County Fair Board and the 4-H Foundation, including President for seven years and eight years; respectfully. He was a founding member of CALF (Colorado Agricultural Leadership Foundation). CALF’s mission of connecting people to agriculture through educational programs, community projects and leadership opportunities was a hallmark of Larry’s life. Through this work he inspired lives, nurtured leaders, and built enduring relationships.
Larry is survived by his loving wife of 60 years; Carol, his children Joy (Stephen) Anderson; Jacki (Jack) Kelley; and Dan Carnahan; three grandchildren Patrick Anderson, Ashley and Nova Kelley; sister Norma (Barry) Feeley; nieces and nephews Mike (Mindy) Killin, Judy Killin, Kris (Dave) Gragnola and Jim Feeley. He has many loving cousins and relatives and touched the lives of so many with his generosity and optimism.
Larry is preceded in death by his parents, Dewey and Bertha Carnahan; his mother and father-in-law, M.E and Esther McClure; his sister and brother in-law Alice and Paul Killin, his nephew Jerry Killin, and his first grandchild Marley Katheryn Anderson. We take great peace that he is with Marley and know her unexpected passing in the fall was a powerful pull home.
Larry lived his life with the powerful combination of resilience and grace. He approached every challenge with optimism and every person with generosity. His deep faith assures us that he is now a guardian angel to all that had the massive privilege of being part of his amazing life.
A celebration of life will be held at 2 pm on Saturday, March 16th at Creekside Bible Church located at 2180 S. Interstate 25 in Castle Rock. A viewing will precede the service from 1-2 pm. A reception will follow at Pegasus Restaurant in Castle Rock at 4:00 pm. Larry will be laid to rest in the Elbert Cemetery. While we hope the impending winter storm will not impact attendance, we have created a livestream that can be accessed from this link for those that are unable to attend.
https://vimeo.com/930945844
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to CALF (https://thecalf.org/index.html) where we will use the funds to support one of their key initiatives in Larry’s name. The family appreciates Pastor Torrey House of Creekside Bible Church and Pastor Stewart McWilliams of Fellowship of the Rockies for their tremendous support at this difficult time.
