Monte Shriver
Monte Shriver, age 85 passed away on Sunday January 12 and left no forwarding address. Monte did not want to say he passed away peacefully, but in the words of Dylan Thomas, "Do not go gentle into that good night, old age should burn and rave at the close of days rage, rage against the dying of the light." But, in the end luekemia won and in the words of Herman House in "Going to Sleep" "Now that I am wearied of the day, I will let the friendly starry night greet all my ardent desires like a sleepy child. Hands, stop all your work. Brow, forget all your thinking. All my senses now yearn to sink into slumber. And my unfettered soul wishes to soar up freely into night’s magic sphere to live there deeply and thousandfold."
He is survived by the love of his life and life partner for 59 1/2 years, Phyllis; three great children Paige Burke, Pamela (Jim) Van Husen, Scott Shriver; step-granddaughter Kelly Van Husen; his sister and great friend, Peggy (Jim) Albertson; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins. He was preceded in death by his parents, Bud and Winnie Shriver, and sister, Sandra Venator.
Monte was born in El Dorado, Kansas in 1934. In 1937 his parents lost their Kansas ranch in the depression and moved to Aztec, New Mexico. Monte graduated from Aztec High School in 1952. In that same year, New Mexico A & M and White Sands Proving Ground instituted the first government-college co-op program where students would work six months and go to school for six months each year. Monte was fortunate to qualify for this program which enabled him to attend college and major in engineering. While in college, Monte was president of his social fraternity (SAE); president of the engineer’s council; a member of honorary engineering fraternities, Sigma Tau and Pi Tau Sigma; national leadership fraternity, Blue Key; vice president of the senior class of 1956; a distinguished AFROTC graduate; and was selected to be in Who’s Who in universities and colleges.
Monte was a member of Montezuma Lodge #1; AF & AM and a 32nd degree Scottish Rite Mason in the valley of Santa Fe, orient of New Mexico, becoming a member of both organizations in Santa Fe in 1963.
Monte graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1957 and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the USAF reserve and reached the rank of captain in the reserve. He was called to active duty in 1958 and served in Korea as division target intelligence officer. While attending photo radar intelligence training at Sheppard Air Force Base Texas, he met his soon to be-wife, Phyllis, and they were married in 1960 following his release from active-duty.
He then worked for Phillips Petroleum Company where he and Phyllis lived in Odessa, Dumas, and Borger, Texas. In 1962, they moved to Austin, Texas where Monte attended graduate school at the University of Texas. In the summer of 1962, he was offered a job with Mountain Bell in Santa Fe, New Mexico. They voted on whether they should stay in graduate school in Austin or spend the summer in Santa Fe. The vote was unanimous and Monte started his career with the Bell System in 1962. During the 29 years with the telephone company they lived, in order, in Santa Fe, Alamogordo, Albuquerque, Las Cruces, Denver, Albuquerque, New Jersey, Evergreen, Colorado and Las Cruces. Monte retired as director-regulatory accounting for US West with responsibility for regulatory accounting in US West’s 14 state operating area. Following retirement, he returned to NMSU in 1989 as a loaned executive and adjunct professor at the Center for Public Utilities for three years. This was followed by four years in the engineering department working for the assistant dean of engineering for development. Monte served on the board of directors of the president’s associates; the executive council of the Aggie Alumni Association; secretary of the mechanical engineering academy; and a member of the Aggie sports association. He was a College of Engineering Centennial distinguished alum and an ingeniero eminent of the NMSU engineering sociedad of ingenieros.
In 1993, he was fortunate to be paired with four great golfers in winning the Suga Annual Amateur Golf Tournament.
In 1997, he was appointed by Governor Johnson to the New Mexico Public Utility Commission.
After serving on the PUC, Monte and Phyllis returned to Las Cruces where Monte volunteered for the BLM and the forest service for 12 years. Monte and Phyllis loved to travel and visited the United Kingdom, mostly Scotland, Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy, Austria and most of the United States with some of their favorite places being the entire state of New Mexico, Depoe Bay, Oregon, Kaua’i and the Great Smokey Mountains National Park. Monte and Phyllis purchased a cabin in Ruidoso in 1995 and really enjoyed their time in the mountains. In 2005, they purchased a condo in Ruidoso after selling their cabin and Las Cruces home. In 2007, health reasons forced them to return to Las Cruces. When Monte was on active duty in the Air Force, he and most of the officers he knew had a copy of "High Flight" by John Gillespie Magee who was an American, joined the RCAF and flew with the British at the beginning of WW II. He wrote "High Flight" shortly before he was killed in an airplane crash at age 19 on December 11, 1941. High Flight Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings; Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth Of sun-split clouds, - and done a hundred things You have not dreamed of wheeled and soared and swung High in the sunlit silence, hovering there, I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung My eager craft through footless halls of air… Up, up the long delirious burning blue I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace Where never lark, or even eagle flew - And while with silent, lifting mind I’ve trod The high untrespassed sanctity of space, Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.
Monte has been cremated at his own wish (his Scottish heritage wouldn’t let him waste money on a funeral) and his ashes will be placed in the Shriver family plot in Aztec, New Mexico with a great view of the La Plata Mountains at a later date.
A memorial service will be held on Friday January 17 at 11:00 am at St. Pauls Methodist Church. In lieu of flowers the family request donations to any Cancer or Heart charity of your choice. Arrangements are with La Paz-Graham’s Funeral Home. To send condolences go to www.lapaz-grahams.com