Dwain Merritt King

Dwain Merritt King of Montrose, CO, passed away on October 18, 2024, at Colorow Care Center in Olathe Colorado. He was born to Merritt and Iris (Probasco) King February 7, 1933, in Montrose, CO. He attended the Menoken School through 8th grade and then attended Montrose High School, from which he graduated in 1951. He attended the Colorado State College of Agriculture and Mechanic arts, now known as Colorado State University, where he participated in ROTC. Upon graduation, he enlisted in the USAF as a 2nd Lieutenant. He became a pilot and flew the F100 as part of the 1st squadron of United States planes capable of obtaining supersonic speeds in level flight. He flew The Iron Curtain carrying an atomic weapon. The plane was new and had numerous failures in the first year of its deployment; over half of his squadron chose to fly their malfunctioning planes into the ground rather than risk them crashing uncontrolled into densely populated areas of Europe. Once, he was called into his commander's office and was not allowed to leave until he wrote a letter to his mother telling her he was okay. He had neglected to write to her for such a long time that she had contacted the Red Cross who contacted his command! Although Dwain was a quiet man and didn’t talk much about his time in the military, he did speak about a time that he accidentally flew into East German air space and ended up with enemy MIGs on his tail. 

He served in the United States Air Force from 1955-1958 and was honorably discharged as a Captain. He returned home from his time in the military to work the family farm with his father. He married Marilyn Sigafus on January 23, 1959. They had three boys, John Merritt King, Thomas Dwain King, and Scott William King. In 1969, Dwain took over the operation from his father, later to be known as King’s Farm and Feedlot. It was around 1980 that Dwain turned the feedlot into a commercial feedlot. During the 1980s, Dwain served on the Montrose County Airport Authority that was responsible for the enhanced and expanded Montrose Regional Airport that was dedicated on Jun 25, 1988. He served his community in many ways, including as a board member of the Montrose Potato Growers and the Uncompahgre Valley Water Users Association, among others. Dwain would often speak of the time that he spent riding on the Lazy Y on the Uncompahgre Plateau with Pearl Cooper. He also spoke about a particular pack trip with his brothers-in-law and Ed’s brother in the Cimarrons. Dwain enjoyed snowmobiling with many friends and family. He and Marilyn took several trips to Alaska and enjoyed many trips with family and friends in their fifth wheel trailer. He continued to travel for many years after Marilyn's death. He also enjoyed spending time at the family cabin on the Little Cimarron and especially enjoyed a good hot dog roasted over a fire. He will be greatly missed!

 He is preceded in death by his wife Marilyn King and son John King. He is survived by his sisters, Karen (Ed) DeJulio, Joanne (Larry) Huff, and sons Thomas King, Scott (Susanne) King, grandchildren, Samantha Alsobrook, Levi Alsobrook, Kaylee (Steve) Vanden Hoek, Stephanie (Peter) Vanden Hoek, Brandon King, great grandchildren, Coralee, Jaina, Sarah, Micah, Marcus, Delaney, and Zane Vanden Hoek, Aland Stroud, and Makayla and Joseph Spangenberg.