James Everett Conlin

Jim was born on August 28, 1927 to James Ambrose (Bruce) Conlin and Emma Jo (Sauter) Conlin. He grew up southeast of LaSalle on the family farm established in 1882 by his Irish immigrant grandfather, James Conlin. Jim attended the LaSalle and Big Bend schools, graduated from College High School in 1945, and then attended Colorado State College of Education in Greeley. He married Mary Ann Schmidt in 1952, and had a 35-year career in the postal service. Making their home in LaSalle, the couple raised three children, Jody, Jennifer, and John.

While in school, Jim excelled as a basketball player and also played football, baseball, and ran track. He bowled for over 30 years on teams in Greeley leagues that won state and national championships and was one of the first two men to be inducted into the Greeley Bowling Hall of Fame. Jim pitched horseshoes competitively with local clubs in Colorado and Arizona and traveled across the country and to Canada to pitch in tournaments, bringing home many first-place trophies. He coached his kids’ 4-H softball teams and his daughters’ fast-pitch softball team that won the Colorado State championship and placed in the top ten nationally. After retirement, Jim greatly enjoyed volunteering as a football coach for the Brighton Michigan Bulldogs under head-coach Bill Murray, his son-in-law. He was a loyal fan of both the Broncos and Rockies.

Jim started hunting as a boy with his pa. Game birds were abundant on land and lakes around the farm, but what he enjoyed most were the decades of fall elk hunting trips taken on horseback into Colorado’s high country with friends. Jim was also an avid fisherman. Annual family vacations centered around camping, back-packing, or horse-packing fishing trips in Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana. After he and Mary Ann retired, they fished with the seasons, going from Mexico, to Lake Powell, to northern Saskatchewan, and to Lake Erie, spending memorable times with friends and family.

Growing up as a farm kid during the Great Depression, Jim developed life-long habits of self-reliance and hard work. He enjoyed scotch whiskey, a good book, and winning at cards. Jim will be remembered by all who knew him for the many stories he loved to tell.

After Jim retired in 1987 as LaSalle’s postmaster, he and Mary Ann traveled in their RV throughout the entire U.S. and to Australia and New Zealand. Jim said their most unforgettable trip was six weeks spent in Alaska. In 2004, they returned to their home near LaSalle, where they lived until their deaths.

Jim was preceded in death by his wife of 70 years, Mary Ann; grandparents James and Abbie (Sullivan) Conlin and John and Rose (Kern) Sauter; parents Bruce and Emma Conlin; infant brother Larry Vincent Conlin; older sister Dorothy (Eldon) McLaughlin of Oregon; step-mother Josephine Bollig Miller Conlin; step-brothers Don and Bill Miller; and half-brother Edward DeVere Conlin of LaSalle.

He is survived by his younger sister, JoAnn (Dick) Craven of LaSalle; children, Jody (Alan) Burke of Minnesota, Jennifer (Bill) Murray of Michigan, and John (Barb) Conlin of Littleton; granddaughters Jessica Murray Grabowski, Jamie Murray Flores, and Kelsy Burke; step-grandsons Matt Murray and Sean Donahue; and 13 great-grandchildren.

A visitation will be held Monday, January 13, 2025 at Allnutt Funeral Service - Macy Chapel, 6521 W. 20th Street, Greeley, Colorado 80634 at 10:00 a.m., followed by a liturgy of the word at 11:00 a.m. Please join the family to celebrate James with a reception following the liturgy of the word. Interment will take place at Mizpah Cemetery in Platteville, CO.