Bernard Walters

Bernard “Bucky” Walters passed in peace early on Saturday, January 23rd, 2021 in Greeley, Colorado.  He was 90 years old.

Born on May 17, 1930 in Burket, Indiana he moved to Stratford, Texas with his mother after the passing of his father when he was 8 years old.  During his school years in Stratford he was an talented singer as well as an accomplished baseball and basketball athlete.  In fact, he was such a good baseball player, that's how he earned the nickname "Bucky".  He was named after a Major League Baseball and All-Star pitcher called Bucky Walters, who played for the Cincinnati Reds from 1938 to 1948.  Our Bucky was also an All-State basketball player on the Stratford High School Basketball team that won the State Championship in 1946.  He graduated from Stratford High School in 1948.

Bucky was always very proud to be a veteran of the US Marine Corps where he served as a forward observer in the 1st Marine Division during the Korean War.  He served in combat there for a year during May 1951- May 1952.  After his release from Active Duty with the Marine Corps, he attended Panhandle A & M College in Goodwell, Oklahoma.  In addition to his studies in Business Administration, he also read the daily news and was a DJ at the campus radio station.  There he met the love of his life Anna Carol Burton. They were married on May 25, 1956 at the Burton home in Cimarron County, Oklahoma.   

With degree in hand, he entered the business world as a banker.  Not as a bank teller or administrator, but as a computer operator.  When he started, computers were nothing like the ones we have today, but were huge arrays of machines that used vacuum tubes and cables in temperature and humidity controlled rooms to process punch cards and spools of magnetic tape.

He was a man of many interests.  He was an author, having written one of the first books concerning the nearby Fort Nichols, which was a military post founded by Kit Carson in 1865.  He was also an artist and in his younger days had showings of his many humorous caricatures and cartoons of famous celebrities.  He was a big band enthusiast and was very fond of the Glenn Miller Orchestra, Roger Whittaker, and Guy Lombardi.  He also did an exhaustive genealogy study and research into both the Walters and the Burton families.  All of these interests were accomplished long before the internet existed, back in the days when you had to go to the library. 

His greatest love was his family.  He is survived by his loving wife Anna Carol of Greeley, Colorado and their children Mark (and Viktoriya) of Woodbridge, Virginia and Lisa of Greeley. Further survived by nieces, nephews and friends. 

Bucky will be fondly remembered as a loving father, amateur author and artist, humorist, big band music lover, genealogy researcher, proud patriot and US Marine Corps veteran.

He is preceded in death by his parents Leonard Edgar and Blanche May (Yates) Walters; brothers Leonard, Hubert, Robert and Delbert and sister Marguerite.

Graveside services will be held 11:00 A.M. Friday, June 18, 2021 at Boise City Cemetery. 

Services are entrusted to Henson-Novak Funeral Directors of Boise City.

In lieu of flowers contributions can be made to Evans United Methodist Church 602 39th Street, Evans CO 80620.  

Friends and family may sign the online guest book or leave a condolence at www.hensonnovak.com.                           

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