Douglas Pearce

Douglas L. Pearce February 17, 1921- May 19, 2010 Services for Douglas L. Pearce will be held Monday, June 7, 2010 at 10:00 AM at the First Presbyterian Church. Viewing will be Sunday, June 6, 2010 from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM at Bustard's Funeral Home. Interment will be at Highland Cemetery. Douglas L. Pearce was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the only child of Levi Percival and Florence Ruth (Smith) Pearce. He was raised in Carbon County, Utah where his father worked as a mining engineer. As a child Doug spent hours on the tennis court and strapping skis to his boots. While attending college he met the love of his life, Virginia Ann Thompson. He graduated with an engineering degree from the Colorado School of Mines in 1942, a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon. Soon thereafter he enlisted in the Army in Salt Lake City as a 1st Lieutenant, 9th Air Force. After their marriage on June 7, 1943 they were stationed in South Dakota until he was sent overseas. He served active duty until 1946 and in reserves until 1949. In 1946 Doug and Ginny made their home in Casper where Doug was employed by the Standard Oil Refinery as a Process Superintendent. Doug and Ginny became parents in the next few years - Larry, August 13, 1949 and Janet, September 23, 1951. He enjoyed a rich family life with his son Larry and daughter Janet. They enjoyed arrowhead hunting, fishing, ice skating, camping, water skiing, and traveling the West. His intense love of rocks and geology led him to lapidary work. He especially enjoyed working with Wyoming jade. Music was of major importance in his life. His mother was an accomplished pianist and piano teacher so he grew up in a home filled with beautiful music. Doug started playing timpani in 9th grade in Price, Utah and was a competitor in music competitions. After arriving in Casper he joined the choir at the First Presbyterian Church and was a tenor soloist on many occasions. He was a charter member of the Casper Orchestra (now the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra) serving as 1st timpanist for 35 years. While on loan to Amoco International he was sent to New York, San Francisco, Milan, Lisbon, Karachi, and Madras on several assignments designing new refineries. His wife joined him in Milan, Italy where they traveled Europe for a month. Several years later his wife and children met him in Istanbul and they traveled Greece, Italy, Paris, and London. They attended Easter worship at Westminster Abbey and discovered Doug's relative Admiral Vernon buried in the Abbey. After retiring from Amoco, Doug and Ginny loved spending time at their cabin at Alcova feeding the chipmunks, birds and deer by hand. Doug enjoyed sailing the Hobie Cat and water skiing. They also enjoyed going to Michigan to visit Janet, her husband and his precious granddaughter. Following his wife's death in 2001 and son's death in 2002, Doug turned his attention to music and generously providing for the First Presbyterian Church and its pipe organ, the Wyoming Symphony and the Muskegon Symphony with timpani. He enthusiastically supported musicians who excelled in organ and timpani. In recent years he was a member of the American Guild of Organists. Doug was a lifelong learner and interested in many subjects. He will always be remembered by his family and many friends for his great and loving kindness and generosity. Doug is survived by his daughter Janet (Doug) Hoch and "bestest granddaughter in the world", Virginia "Ginny" Hoch, Muskegon, Michigan. Memorial gifts to the First Presbyterian Church Organ Fund or the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra in his name would be appreciated. Condolences for the family may be left at bustardsfuneralhome.com

Visitation

Sunday, June 6, 2010 1:00pm - 5:00pm