Merit Reed Carter

MERIT REED CARTER Funeral services for Merit Reed Carter, a longtime resident of Cortez will be held at 2 p.m. Monday, April 16 at the First Baptist Church of Cortez with Rev. James Patton officiating. Interment will follow at Cortez Cemetery with Masonic graveside services being conducted by Masonic Lodge #133 A.F. & A.M. Visitation has been set for Sunday afternoon from 2 to 4 p.m. at Ertel Memorial Chapel. Merit Reed Carter, 89, died April 11 at his home surrounded by his family. He was born Nov. 1, 1917 in Calvin, Okla., to Rufus William Carter and Vida Mae Reed. As the son of a farmer and amateur veterinarian, Merit spent much of his childhood working around the farm and helping with animals. He attended grade school in Stuart, Okla. As a young man, Merit worked many different types of jobs. At 16 years old he tended turkeys in Wiley, Colo. At 17 and 18 he spent time in the Civilian Conservation Corps. (CCC) then he went on to work around Bloomfield, Colo.; Aztec, N.M.; and Mesa Verde National Park. At 19 he worked in a pea cannery in Colorado’s San Luis Valley and when he was 20, he picked dates in California. At the start of World War II, Merit attempted to enlist in the armed forces, but was rejected because of “flat feet.” When he failed to get into the service, Merit spent the war years working in a shipyard in Richmond, Calif. He left California after the war was over and ran a tire shop in Arkansas for a short time. Merit then returned to Oklahoma where he met and married Inez Leigh on Jan. 30, 1948. The couple then moved to Russell, Kan. where they had two children, Ronald Carter and Lana Carter. While in Kansas, Merit started his career in the oil field and worked there for 10 years as a “pumper.” Merit was then employed by Superior Oil, Co. and lived three years on the Navajo Indian Reservation at Montezuma Creek, Utah. The family then moved into Cortez in 1958 and Merit commuted to the oil field. In the latter part of his career with Superior Oil, Merit was safety director and taught safety and defensive driving to Superior employees. He retired from the company in 1983 after 25 years. Merit was very civic minded and was elected to the Cortez City Council in 1980. He was then elected mayor of Cortez in 1982 and 1983. He left the council for a few years, but then ran a second time, however he only served two years of that term. Merit had many accomplishments during his time in office, and for this reason he was named Cortez Citizen of the Year in 2000. He was also a member of the First Baptist Church of Cortez. Merit believed in volunteering and serving his community. He was a member of Masonic Lodge and past Master of Buelah Lodge No. 291 in Bunker Hill, Kan. He was also past master of Cortez Lodge No. 133. For 18 years he was an active member of the Escalante Shrine Club is Cortez and served as a hospital representative. Merit was instrumental in ensuring numerous children in this area received treatment at Shriner’s hospitals. Merit was also one of the first volunteers for the Colorado Welcome Center in Cortez. When he retired as a volunteer from the center in 2005, Merit had accumulated more than 3, 000 hours of volunteer time. Merit was always a very active person. He was an avid gardener, growing large pumpkins – one which exceeded 360 pounds. He was also a golfer and poet with some published works. Merit loved to perform and was in multiple melodramas and was part of the group “Desperados and Fancy Ladies.” Known for his sense of humor, Merit has an ability to make complete strangers a friend. For some he as like Will Rogers who said, “A stranger is a friend I haven’t met yet.” He loved nature and taking trips to the mountains with his family. Merit always had a special place in his heart for his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. Merit was preceded in death by his parents, two brothers and one sister. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Inez Carter of Cortez; his son, Ronald Carter of Cortez; his daughter, Lana Carter and husband, Alan Ziff of Avondale, Colo.; grandchildren, Misty Carter and Richard Carter, both of Cortez; Robert Carter and wife, Glenda of Blue Springs, Miss.; Keegan Flaugh and wife, Melissa of Lakewood, Colo.; Erin Davidson and husband, Rodney of Florence, Colo.; Shannon Thol and husband, Bart of Ames, Iowa; and 13 great grandchildren. Merit will be greatly missed by his family and many close friends. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Merit’s name to Hospice of Montezuma, Inc. at P.O. Drawer 740, Cortez, CO 81321.