Photo provided
April 25, 1932 – October 10, 2022
Dr. William “Bill” Kenworthy Baldwin, DVM died October 10, 2022 at Regional West Medical Center. A memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, October 17, 2022 at Faith Lutheran Church in Gering, NE. A second memorial service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, October 21, 2022 at Concordia Lutheran Church, followed by an incarceration at the cemetery in Steamboat Springs, CO. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions be made in Bill’s name to: Faith Lutheran Church PO Box 307 Gering, NE 69341; or Routt County Fair PO Box 1000 Hayden, CO 81639. Memorial baskets will also be available at services. Online condolences can be made by visiting Bill’s memorial page at http://www.bridgmanfuneralhome.com. Bridgman Funeral Home in Scottsbluff is making arrangements.
Bill was born on April 25, 1932 in Fort Collins to W. Edwin and Emilie (Propp) Baldwin. He lived his youth in Rand, Colorado until his parents purchased a ranch in Steamboat Springs in April 1941. He attended school in Steamboat Springs where he was the senior class president in 1950. He married the love of his life, Alma Jean Wellnitz, on September 18, 1955 in Rushville, Nebraska. He graduated from Colorado A&M (now Colorado State University) with a DVM in May 1956 and joined the Air Force Veterinary Corp. He served as a base veterinarian at U.S. Air Force Base Misawa, Japan with food inspection and health duties as the base watchdog. Alma joined him and his daughter, Kathy was born in 1957 while they were there. After completing his military duty, the family moved to Loveland, CO where he joined a mixed animal veterinary practice. During this time her daughter, Caroline in 1958, and her son, Bill in 1959, were born. After five years the family moved back to Steamboat Springs and he joined the Steamboat Veterinary Hospital. He practiced this profession for 35 years until his retirement in 1997. His daughter, Janet Marie, was born in 1965 after the three older children were in school. Janet died of lymphoblastic leukemia at the age of four.
Bill has served in numerous civic and community organizations: the Steamboat Springs School Board for 8 years during this term he served four years as Board Chair; Yampa Valley Land Trust, founding member and chairman of the Yampa Valley Foundation Board; Colorado Mountain College Foundation Board; Routt County Agricultural Bureau Board of Trustees (served as chairman), member of Routt County Cattlemen, board member of Concordia Lutheran Church and past congregation president, member of Faith Lutheran Church; and member of the Scotts Bluff County Agricultural Bureau. He and Alma were Routt County Fair Marshals in 1998 and he received the Leckenby Award in 2007.
Bill has also always enjoyed breeding. He liked to shovel a shovel over his shoulder and “chase” water around the flooded irrigated meadows at Steamboat. After moving to Nebraska in 1997, he and Alma returned to Steamboat in the summers to graze cattle until 2007, when they remained in Nebraska year-round. Among his interests on the Nebraska ranch, Bill was the primary builder of electric fences along with his grandson Clay.
Bill is survived by his wife of 67 years, Alma; daughter Kathy (Albert) Deepe of Hayden CO; his daughter Caroline (John) Sabin of North Platte, NE; son Bill (Queeda) Baldwin of Mitchell NE; grandchildren and great-grandchildren: Nathan (Jess) Deepe (Owen and Natalie) of Firestone, CO; Andrea Deepe of Loveland, CO; Janel (Matt) Russell (Audrey and Daphne) of Okatie, SC; Luke Sabin of San Diego, California; Jared Sabin of Omaha, NE; Kyra (Chris) Jorgensen (Mabel, James and John) of Hardin, MT; and Tevyn Baldwin, Clay Baldwin and Ryal Baldwin, all of Mitchell, NE; brother-in-law, Warren Wellnitz, San Diego, Calif., sisters-in-law, Joyce Wellnitz and MaryAnne Wellnitz, both of Rushville; and several nephews and nieces.
His parents predeceased him; daughter, Janet; brother and sister-in-law Harold and Carol (Pieper) Baldwin; brothers-in-law, Willard Wellnitz and Jim Wellnitz; and his sister-in-law, Bernice (Hallock) Wellnitz.
Along with his great love of family and faith, Bill’s lasting legacy is preserving open spaces and promoting animal agriculture in Northwest Colorado.
