Obituary of Ronald A. Einspahr

Longtime Burlington, Colorado resident Ronald A. Einspahr went to his heavenly home on Sunday, November 28, 2021, at the Kit Carson County Hospital in Burlington after a short battle with COVID. He fought a hard fight but, in the end, it was his time to go home. He was 74 years old. Ronald Alfred Einspahr was born on May 13, 1947, in Burlington, Colorado to Alfred John Peter and Minnie Lizzy (Arends) Einspahr. He was the third child born to this union. He grew up and attended school in Stratton, Colorado. He graduated from Stratton High School on May 20, 1965. He was in the Stratton School band. As a young boy he spent time with his goat, rabbits, and puppy. His puppy would wait at the gate for the bus to drop him off from school. Ron would then give the puppy a ride around in his wagon. Ron was mischievous as a little boy being quite a bit younger than his older sisters, he was always pulling shenanigans. He once cut the finger off his sister Betty’s doll and put paste in his sister Gwen’s doll’s hair. He also told his sister Gwen one time to pat his goat on the head and when she did the goat chased her right into the house because the screen door didn’t shut behind her. They did have some good times as siblings too playing softball using the gate as home plate and the stock tank as a base. As siblings they also liked to play cards such as pitch. His sisters also remembered him trying to climb the light pole like a lineman once they got electricity in their home. He was baptized on June 1, 1947, at the St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Stratton, Colorado. Later he was confirmed on April 2, 1961. He was a member of this church until he transferred to the Immanuel Lutheran Church north of Bethune, Colorado on September 4, 1978. Ronald Einspahr and Linda Shutte met and later married on February 6, 1971, at the St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Stratton, Colorado. To this union three children were born Tammy Sue (1972), Lee Alain (1975) and Timothy James (1976). They divorced on September 11, 1980. When his children were growing up, he enjoyed riding 4 wheelers and 3 wheelers with them and his nephews Kent, Dave and Lester. His children remember helping him with cattle on the farm. They also did some snowmobiling with their dad too. Ron enjoyed riding horses and teaching his children how to ride. His nephew Dave remembered being pulled behind the horse in a wagon. Ron was a farmer all his life working for a few different farmers in the area. He worked for Kenneth Scheierman for thirty years, Doug Worden for twelve years and Braden Schaal for the last fourteen years. He had many duties on the farm such as feeding, medicating, calving cows out and working cattle. He swathed many fields of hay and spent many hours in the bale wagon pick them up and stacking them. He loved farming and always enjoyed being in the tractor for hours on end. The grandkids spent some time in the tractor with him. He was a hard worker and work was all he knew. He was always up before the chickens and always in bed before the chickens. When he became a grandpa, he enjoyed 4 wheeling with the grandchildren and still continued his passion of riding horses with them too. He enjoyed helping his grandchildren Tyler and Brandi with their show animals for 4-H, nothing made he prouder than watching them show their animals at the county fair every year. He took his children and grandchildren shooting prairie dogs which he thoroughly enjoyed also. Target shooting was another of his favorite pastimes including the time he and his son Lee shot empty .22 casings of the fence post. He always enjoyed a good show on the Hallmark channel or a western. Playing cards such as Uno, Yahtzee, Five Crowns and Phase 10 with his children and grandchildren at family gatherings was also something he enjoyed. He liked to go to Hotrod Tractor Pulls. Many people who knew Ron said he was an ornery man and he was always giving them a bad time. He will be sadly missed by all who knew him. He is preceded in death by his parents; Minnie and Alfred and his brother-in-law James Schlichenmayer. Those left to cherish his memories are his children; Tammy (Terry) Huffman of Thornton, Colorado, Lee (Angela) Einspahr of Bethune, Colorado, Timothy Einspahr (Angie Mercado) of Thornton, Colorado, his grandchildren; Chad and Sabrina Huffman of Thornton, Colorado, Tyler Einspahr of Colorado Springs, Colorado and Brandi Einspahr (Arron Arteaga) of Raleigh, North Carolina. Also surviving him are his sisters; Gwen Schlichenmayer of Burlington, Colorado, Betty (Ralph) Hansen of Colby, Kansas, his niece, nephews, uncles, aunt, cousins and friends. Memorials may be made to Immanuel Lutheran Church or to Eastern Plains Animal Welfare Alliance (EPAWA) in Ron's memory and may be left at or sent to Love Funeral Home, 377 15th Street, Burlington, Colorado 80807.