John Pyron Harris

JOHN PYRON HARRIS Funeral services for Cortez resident, John Pyron Harris will be held at 2 p.m. on Thursday, June 4 at the Ertel Memorial Chapel. Interment will be held in Rocky Ford, Colo. A visitation has been scheduled for Wednesday evening at the Ertel Chapel from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. John Pyron Harris, age 83, passed away in Cortez, Colo. on May 31, 2015. John was born in Bailey Ford, Texas on June 2, 1931 to W. Earl Harris and Orpha Garvin Harris. In 1935 they moved to Dove Creek, Colo. to pinto bean farm. After graduating from high school in 1949, he went to Fort Lewis college for two years where he then transferred to University of Colorado at Boulder to study Pharmacy. In 1955 he graduated with his pharmacy degree and began his internship in Pueblo, Colo. He then married Charla Joanne Poteet on October 6, 1955. In 1956 they moved to Rocky Ford, Colo. where he worked for Holland Drug. In 1969 he purchased the pharmacy from Earl Holland and eventually renamed it Harris Pharmacy. He sold the pharmacy in 1982 and then worked at various pharmacy positions, including seven years for the state prison system, until 2001 when he retired at age 70. In his 25 plus years living in Rocky Ford, he was an active member of the community, including becoming a Mason, a Shriner, and a member of the Elks. He is survived by his wife, Lois of Cortez; his daughters, Kim Tapscott (Doug)of Coatesville, PA, and Kellie Rixse of Anchorage, AK; his grandchildren, Jason Tapscott, Sean Tapscott (Mercy), Chad Rixse, Cody Rixse and Carissa Rixse Guernsey (Joshua); his great-grandchildren, Liliana Tapscott, Damien Tapscott, Tiffany Guernsey, and Cherie Guernsey; Donald and Donice Ghella (Lois)and family; Sharon and David Skilling (Lois)and family. He was preceded in death by his first wife Charla and son Kevin.