LaMontagne, Edward W.
Ted LaMontagne
(1939 - 2009)
Born to American parents in Mexico City and remained there for his education until enrolling at the University of Texas where he graduated with a degree in history. He was an officer in the US Navy.
Moved to Evergreen in about 1970.
Owned and operated The Hardware (1973 - 2005), the former log show barn that was part of the Buchanan ranch i(1938-1958), built to house their prized Herefords. The Hardware was the town's second oldest business when it closed in 2005. Over the years he employed many special needs students from Evergreen High School at his stores and earned a reputation for working with them and nurturing them. He was also co-owner of Mountain Home, which was adjacent to The Hardware.
Active in the Evergreen Chamber of Commerce during the 1980s, the Downtown Business Association, serving on their boards and those of numerous other nonprofit organizations.
Key figure in the Colorado Philharmonic Orchestra's days in Evergreen (1966-86) prior to its becoming the National Repertory Orchestra and relocating to Keystone; the CPO/NRO brought 75 of the finest young orchestra students (aged 17-26, chosen from 1,000 who auditioned) from across the nation to Evergreen for nine weeks of the summer to practice and play together. The students were housed at the Marshdale Lodge, a former dude ranch. When the orchestra relocated, Ted founded the Evergreen Music Festival in 1990 to bring the orchestra back to Evergreen several times during the summer months, serving as its president for 7 years. He and others were responsible for creating the Fourth of July Celebration at the Lake. As a private citizen, Ted was the driving force in convincing the Evergreen Park and Recreation District to recognize the arts as passive recreation.
Ted was an instrumental force and supporter during the early years of Bootstraps, an organization that formed in about 1979 to assist graduates of Evergreen High School lacking family support and/or encouragement for one reason or another. Initially, Bootstraps operated in such a secretive way so as not to draw attention to the recipients that it created a situation by which it was difficult to raise money. The organization provided interest-free student loans, and board members personally mentored the students throughout their years in college. Bootstraps later merged with Evergreen Scholarship Association in about 1991 and was known as Evergreen Scholarship/Bootstraps; in about 2009 it began going by the shortened name "Bootstraps."
He was a board member of Art for the Mountain Community and was himself a devoted sculptor and art collector. He served on the community review and planning committees for both the Evergreen Lakehouse and Buchanan Park. He was a longtime member and officer of First Church of Christ, Scientist, Evergreen, and a board member for Wide Horizon, the Christian Science care facility in Wheat Ridge.
"Ted was "outspoken in his support of Evrgreen's values as a small mountain community ... we think of him as the core of what Evergreen stands for -- commitment to small business, support of education and the arts, dedication to a clean and healthful living environment." (Written by Ruth and Bill Hershberger in nominating him for Person of the Year in 1998). He encouraged others to make positive contributions to the community and led by example, both personally and monetarily.
Source: Evergreen, Our Mountain Community; wife Kay D'Evelyn LaMontagne; and Linda Kirkpatrick
