James LeRoy Boardman

James LeRoy “Jim” Boardman, 82, died May 19, 2019, at Golden Pond Memory Center in Golden from cerebral amyloid angiopathy.

He was born Nov. 17, 1936, in Palisade to Merle and Hazel Boardman.

After high school, he went to Colorado A & M College in Fort Collins, where he majored in electrical engineering.

Mr. Boardman was hired by Mountain States Telephone and Telegraph Co. to determine how to best improve widely scattered rural telephone service all over the state of Colorado – at that time a difficult challenge. He became district manager of the southwestern part of the state.

His office was in Pueblo, and it was there that he met Mary Alice De Luca, a pharmacist at St. Mary Corwin Hospital. The two were married April 2, 1967, at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Salida.

He was transferred to Denver, where he worked until his early retirement in 1990. He then worked for the Fish and Game Department for a few years, stunning fish to be tested for diseases.

Mr. and Mrs. Boardman traveled to most of the continental United States, as well as to Alaska and Hawaii. They went to many islands in the Carribean, Panama, Costa Rica and Central America to see the Mayan ruins.

His favorite places to visit were Botswana, South Africa, Alaska, Kodiak, Australia and New Zealand. He enjoyed swimming with the eastern humpback whales.

Family members said he was a great dad and grandpa, and he will be terribly missed.

Survivors include his wife; daughter, Kristina Edwards; son, Jim Boardman; and grandchildren, Lauren and Braden Edwards and Wendy and Jimmy Boardman.

His funeral services will be at 11 a.m. June 22, 2019, at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Salida.

Interment will follow at Fairview Cemetery.

Memorial donations can be made to the Benet Hill Monastery in Colorado Springs, Alzheimer's Association or to St. Joseph Catholic Church Alter and Rosary Society.

Arrangements were with Lewis and Glenn Funeral Home in Salida.

Online condolences may be offered at lewisandglenn.com.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of James LeRoy Boardman, please visit our floral store.