Cab Uptain

ALFRED MARION "CAB" UPTAIN Memorial services for Alfred Marion "Cab" Uptain will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 25 at the Ertel Memorial Chapel. Inurnment services will follow at Cortez Cemetery. Alfred Marion Uptain, "Cab" as we all knew him, was born to Francis Marion and Sorena Marie (Pederson) Uptain in Lewis, Colo. on October 26, 1921. He passed away at the Vista Grande Nursing Home on June 22, 2011. He was the 4th child to be born to this Uptain family and was the only boy. As a young boy he worked with his father farming and custom thrashing. As he grew older he knew that the farming life was not for him and he purchased and ran his own pool hall. He married Evelyn Blair and to this union Sandra Raye Uptain was born. Later he worked for Hal Rogers in the old Elks Lodge and later became the manager. He was a very active part in the construction of the Elks Lodge as we now know it and was the manager for 25+ years. During this time he married Zola Spruell and to this union James David Uptain was born. Upon retiring from the Elks Lodge he and his wife Dorothy moved to Las Vegas Nevada where he worked in several different casinos doing what he loved most; gambling or being associated with it. While in Las Vegas he suffered a heart attack and had quadruple bypass surgery. He moved back to Cortez for a short period of time and decided that Bullhead City, Ariz. was the place for him. He made Bullhead City his home for 13 years coming to Cortez often to see his family and friends. He worked in several different casinos across the Colorado River in Laughlin, Nev. but the casino he called his home away from home was Avi and where he retired from 3 years ago to move back to Cortez. Moving back to Cortez he made many new friends and got reacquainted with the old ones. He spent a lot of his time visiting and eating in the Senior Center and dancing wherever he could find a dance. This past October a surprise birthday party for his 89th was thrown in his honor at the Elks Lodge. It was indeed a surprise with all his family and friends, and his favorite things "cake and a dance". Cab had a love for the outdoors as well. When he was younger he loved to go hunting with his son, Jimmy, and fishing with his daughter and her family at Bauer Lake. Cab had a great deal of friends and will truly be missed by many people. The world has lost a great man who didn't know a stranger. Cab is survived by his daughter, Sandy and her husband, Donald, of Dove Creek; grandchildren Marti and her husband, Bob Long, of Cortez, Kurt and his wife, Angela, of Grand Junction; three great grandchildren, Tarryn, Nathan, and Rylan all of Grand Junction; along with many nieces, nephews, and cousins. Preceding Cab in death is his beloved son, Jimmy, his parents; 3 sisters; a brother-in-law; a niece; and his wives, Evelyn, Zola, and Dorothy.