On August 11, 1932 Walter Allen Bailey was born in the back seat of a 1927 Hudson on the way to the hospital.  This baby was not going to wait, he was going to be early.  So, when people ask why he arrives early everywhere he goes, that is the only explanation there is – it all started on day one!  He grew up on a farm 18 miles north west of Sterling, Colorado with seven sisters and two brothers.

When he was 3 years old, one evening at the dinner table, his mother asked if anybody wanted anything else, little Walter with his spoon in one hand and his fork in the other pounded the table and said, "SPUDS!  Want more spuds!"  This is where he got his nick name "Spud".  Many called him Walt, his family called him Spud and all his nieces and nephews knew him as "Uncle Spud".  His wife, Jeanne, loving referred to him as "Tater".

He attended Graland School through the eighth grade then attended high school in Sterling.  Always on the go and loving to run, he lettered in track.

After graduating from the Sterling High School, he joined the National Guard and worked at the ammunition depot, moving large pallets of ammunition … a dangerous job, but he was good at it and no one else was willing to do it.

In 1951 he met, fell in love with and married Charlotte Jeanne LeBlanc.  He then started working at Public Service which facilitated a move to Brush in 1953 where together they raised three daughters and a son.

"Community" meant a lot to him.  He always said, "I don't have a lot of money but I can always give of my time".  And give he did.  He belonged to so many organizations it would be hard to list them all.  He was a charter member of the Brush Junior Chamber of  Commerce bringing the annual rodeo to town, which is still a tradition today.  In 2014, in recognition he served as Co-Grand Marshal of the Fourth of July parade along with Wayne Small, Ray Madsen and Bob Sharritt.  That was such an honor for him.  He never expected to be recognized for any contribution to his community – he simply did whatever he could because he loved his town.

Over his 60+ years in Brush he was a part of the Jay-Cees, Lions Club, the Masonic Lodge and served on the City Council for 12 years.  While a member of Morgan County Chapter of Pheasants Forever he helped to plant 500 Junipers, 800 plum and chokecherries trees along 9000 feet of weed barrier.  And of course, continuing the care of these plants by watering them afterward.  It was hard work, but he loved it and was glad to give back to Mother Nature.

He went wherever he was needed, and did whatever needed to be done.  He was the first one to show up and the last one to go home.  He'd set up tables and chairs, helped with events and then took down the tables and chairs.  He sold tickets, collected tickets, flipped pancakes, cooked sausages, hid Easter eggs, directed traffic, sold fireworks, worked concessions stands raising money for various community groups and loved every minute of it because it was for his community and this is how he got to know everyone.

His family grew up, attending the Presbyterian Church where he and Jeanne served in a number of capacities over 50 years.  Later he found the Methodist Church to hold truer to his religious beliefs and became a member attending every Sunday.

Walt and Jeanne loved to dance.  Sometimes they would be in the kitchen in their bare feet dancing to music only the two of them could hear.  They were always in sync.  If there was music, they were dancing! And even if there wasn't any music, they were dancing!

Walt and Jeanne loved spending time with their family taking annual camping trips to our nearby mountains.  They also loved bottle hunting and growing a huge garden in the backyard. They went to every high school track meet, football and basketball game driving a car load of pep club members and other students to the out of town games, making sure everyone was safe and sound.

Together they tried their hand at making wine and became very good at it, sharing their labor of love with family and friends.  Walt even took home a First Pace ribbon at the County Fair. They loved to travel and had a goal to travel to all 50 states.  They almost made it, but as fate would have it Jeanne passed away on Christmas Day, 1993 after battling lung cancer for ten years.  Shortly thereafter, Walt fought and won his own battle with kidney cancer.

With his soulmate gone, Walt was a little lost at first but decided to pick up where the two of them left off and travel to the last three states left on their bucket list.  He sailed through the chilly Alaskan Inside Passage, flew to Hawaii where he had some really good seafood and last but not least went to New Orleans, Louisiana, where he discovered he really didn't care for gumbo.  Then he took one more trip and that was to Spain.  But his favorite place to go as often as possible was to the Oregon coast.  There he would sit and absorb the power of the mighty Pacific Ocean and eat as many razor clams as he could before returning home.

Home … where he gathered during the week days going out to have coffee "with the guys".  This was a ritual he cherished.  He could shoot the breeze with his good friend Joe Edson, the late Al George, and many more too numerous to count.

When you reach heaven God won't ask what kind of car you drove, but will ask how many people you drove who didn't have transportation. Walt drove the Veterans Administration Van taking our veterans to and from their various doctors' appointments who wouldn't otherwise have transportation.  He drove to Greely, Denver, Ft. Collins and Cheyenne.  He drove in good weather, and he drove in the worst weather – putting ­­­over 125,000 miles on the van over 8 years.  And, yes, he got them to their appointments early!

There was never a time when he wasn't busy giving selflessly to the very community he lived in.   Yes, he gave of his time – ALL THE TIME – and freely.  Brush is where he spent all but 20 years of his life … Brush is where he raised his family … and Brush was where his heart was.

Walt suffered a series of strokes over the past few years but continued to live every day to the fullest.

Walt peacefully stepped into heaven on January 27, 2025 at the age of 93.  He will be missed and fondly remembered by the people whose lives he touched over the years.  He was preceded in death by his wife Jeanne (LeBlanc) Bailey, daughter Ellen Lessner, son-in-law Albert Pribble, his parents Charles and Francis, 2 brothers, Art and Gilbert, sisters
Evelyn, Erva, Cleora, Opal, Gerda Mae, Wilda and Charlene.  He is survived by daughters Lynn Paul of Portland Oregon, Chris Pribble of Brush CO, son-in-law Rick Lessner of Black Hawk CO and son Chip Bailey of Littleton CO, 10 grandchildren, 10 great grand-children and a loving host of nieces, nephews and friends.

Walt went through his entire life without the sense of smell and always said that when he gets to heaven, the first thing he wanted to do was smell a rose.  Well, now you can Daddy… now you can stop and smell the roses!

Services to be held end of May.