Albert "Dan" Daniel Hause

Dan Hause Obituary 5/2/1947 – 10/18/2020

               By reading these words, you’ve probably figured out that I've left this life and am headed to my next destination. I'm looking forward to the journey.

I had a wonderful life here, full of family, friends and fond memories that will fill my soul throughout eternity. I have no regrets. Well, maybe a couple, but they're pretty insignificant if you consider the grand scheme of things. Nothing that's going to keep me awake at night.

Wow, this is some bohemian obituary so far, don't you think? But you see, I had the luxury of preparing this before I left planet Earth, talking to Roxy and Butch (that's my sister and brother, in case you need that for the record) for hours during my final days. We recorded my ramblings and Butch sifted through everything and the three of us put this together with my approval and my blessing.

So, I want to take a quick look back, but I'm not going to spend a lot of time doing that. If you want more details, give it a little time and call Roxy or Butch and they can fill in the gaps. Fair enough?

Our family lived on a small farm between Brighton and Ft. Lupton in the heart of the Independence community. Our folks ran a salting station (pickle dock, as we called it) and Dad farmed a chunk of sand east of the place and grew some of the best wheat in the country. He also kept a string of "gummer" cows in the pasture so we always had meat in the freezer.

I learned everything I needed to know about life from working on that farm, milking cows, stacking hay and plowing dryland in the summer heat. We worked together, as a family and with our neighbors, to make sure we all had enough to get through. I wish I could tell the kids reading this how important that was to me. You old farts know exactly what I'm talking about.

I started first grade at the Independence School and graduated from Brighton High School. I worked a few summers at Meeker Park Lodge wrangling dudes at the livery stable and loving my time in the mountains. In fact, my sister and I ended up buying a cabin about 200 yards from where I worked those summers. That cabin was my favorite place to hang. Absolute Heaven.

After serving in the Navy, I went to college and wound up with a Master’s Degree in Clinical Pharmacology. I know it's not as impressive to you academics as a PhD, but it worked for me.

As most of you know, my life's work was in medicine, specifically as a pharmacist. I'm really proud of that, and I know that my knowledge and skills in that field helped a lot of people who were trying to navigate a way through their own suffering. I don't know if I saved any lives, and it really doesn't matter one way or another. I just know that I could help when help was needed, and that's what made my life worthwhile.

After I retired, I found I wanted to spend more of my time helping people, but without handing them drugs. So, I volunteered for Meals on Wheels in Greeley, run by my amazing late aunt Mary Margaret Cox. Then I bought a travel trailer and started spending my winters in Port Aransas, Texas, not far from where I did my time in the Navy in Beeville. I cooked meals for vets, the Coast Guard and the homeless, rescued turtles on South Padre Island, and helped the seniors in my community maintain their homes and live quality lives. Coming back to Brighton in the summers, I spent a lot of time at La Puente in Alamosa, a loving, caring organization that takes care of the homeless in one of the most poverty-stricken places in Colorado. I cut firewood by the cord, hauled water and tarps and cooked meals.

I’m giving my friends at La Puente my old pick-up truck. I know they’ll get a lot of use out of it. The battery is brand new, but go easy on the clutch. And speaking of La Puente, if you feel like sending them a memorial donation, I’d be real happy with that. They’re info is:

La Puente Legacy Fund Dan Hause Memorial P.O. Box 1235 Alamosa, CO 81101.

I’ve got 50-year pins from the Elks and Masons. Time well spent with both outfits.

And to my friends from the Tallow River Trappers – I’ll miss sitting around our campfires telling lies, eating anything we could cook up in the Dutch oven and drinking Captain Morgan’s and choke cherry bounce. We kept the West alive, guys.

Well, I could go on for a bit more, but, frankly, I'm really tired and ready to get outta here. Time to git 'er done, if you know what I mean. Much love to all that I cared about, and cared for me in return. Y'all have been great. You made my life good to the end.

Bye bye and buy American. Dan 

Instead of sending flowers, the family of Dan would ask if there are any donations to be made, to please make them too:

La Puente Legacy Fund

Dan Hause Memorial 

PO Box 1235

Alamosa, CO 81101

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Albert "Dan" Daniel Hause, please visit our floral store.