Obituary of Elwyn Shimoda

Elwyn Shimoda, PhD, 81, of Parker, CO, Entered into Heaven on February 18, 2018 with family at his side. Loving Husband of 56 years to Marilyn. Exceptional Dad of Kim Shimoda of Cape Coral, FL, Kevin (Lisa) Shimoda of Parker, CO, Steven (Carolyn) Shimoda of Houston, TX, Julie (Dave) Law of Lakewood, CO and Luke Shimoda of Gunnison, CO. Special Grandpa of Angela, Thierry, Stephanie, Erin, Kelsey, Lindsey, Grace and Hannah. Brother of Hylam (Kiyomi) Shimoda of Aurora, CO, Wayne Shimoda of San Jose, CA and Dwight (Adrienne) Shimoda of Monterey, CA. Also survived by extended family and many friends. Services on Monday, February 26, 2018, Rosary 10:30 a.m., Visitation 11:00 a.m. and Funeral Mass at 11:30 a.m. all at Ave Maria Catholic Church in Parker. Elwyn grew up on a farm in Colorado with his five brothers and one sister. His parents, immigrants from Japan and Hawaii, earned a living as tenant farmers. During this time at the end of the Depression, the entire family worked to help make ends meet. Hard work and lean times not only built character, it also taught Elwyn that he wanted a different life. He knew his way out of the farm life was through education. Through the ROTC program, he graduated from the Colorado School of Mines with a degree in chemical engineering and would later receive his PhD from the University of Denver. After graduating from Mines, he served 5 years in the US Army, stationed at Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland. Once he fulfilled his obligation, he began his engineering career at the Hanford Nuclear Site in the state of Washington, returning to Colorado to teach at the Colorado School of Mines in 1966. In 1974, the family moved to Ponca City, Oklahoma, where he enjoyed a career in Research and Development at Conoco. He took early retirement in 1994 and returned to Colorado where he promptly started his next career as a recruiter, often working with Mines graduates and former Conoco colleagues. When he retired a second time, he started his next career as a shuttle driver for Toyota where he spent his days meeting people, telling stories, and improving his workplace, some of his favorite things. At the age of 80, he stopped driving the shuttle and was appointed liaison for the customers in the service department. A humble man, if you asked him today, he would say that he is a shuttle driver. He married Marilyn Kochevar in 1961. They lived happily ever after for 56 years. He was the kind and wise father and grandfather of five children and eight grandchildren. His early life and commitment to family shaped his life. When we think of him, we think family man, friend, chemical engineer, professor, lifelong teacher, fisherman, hiker, tent-trailer camper, skier, golfer, Bronco fan, gardener, tender of orchids, nurturer of children, lover of Colorado and of all the outdoors. The family suggests that donations may be made in his memory to Ave Maria Catholic Church or to the Amache Preservation Society, PO Box 259 Granada, CO 81041.