Owen J. Hart

Owen Junior Hart, 91, passed away at home September 1, 2011 in El Paso, Texas. He was born to the late Elmer David Hart and Phoebe Ann Cofer Hart January 31, 1920 in Flagstaff, AZ. After proudly serving in the U.S. Army during WWII (SSgt), he attended Texas Western School of Mines in El Paso, receiving a B.S. in Geology. He married Mary Frances Buehler in 1952, moved to Fairbanks, Alaska and worked as a professional painter before relocating to Lark, Utah to begin his professional career. Owen was an accomplished mining geologist for United States Smelting and Refining, Gulf Mineral Resources, retired from Sharon Steel and lived in Silver City NM. Loving the challenges of underground mining and exploration geology, he authored and published many reports/maps and was a well-respected member of the American Institute of Mining Engineers (AIME). Owen was a humble man of great integrity, who adored his family, loved his country, and never met a stranger. Personal sacrifice, hard work, and respect, were his defining virtues. His greatest joys were time spent with family and the accomplishments of those he loved, especially his daughters’. There are many left behind who call him Mentor. Loving the great outdoors, he enjoyed fishing, pheasant hunting, hot chili, a cold beer, and describing images created by clouds in the blue sky on a sunny day. He was a re-known storyteller, recounting his numerous life challenges and adventures including a two-year saga of life underground in the Alaskan permafrost during his military service in WWII, and playing trumpet in a dance band, The Music Masters (how he loved jazz; especially “Sachmo”). His 1000- mile journey (1946) down the Yukon River in a 13 foot canoe with his late best friend John Butler, and one shotgun was a repertoire favorite. In retirement, he became an avid crossword solver and spent endless hours learning to use a PC to write “His Life’s Tale”…a precious gift to his family. He was preceded in death by his brothers, James, Luther, and David Hart and his sister Margaret Hart Wilson. He is survived by his wife Mary of 59 years, and daughters Stephanie Caviness Tantimonaco (Michael), Margaret Hart Zerboni, and three grand-dogs, Riley, Bacci, and Dolce. Our family would like to express gratitude to Maria “Magda” Caro, Alma “Chachis” Cabrales, and Dr. Dwayne and Michele Aboud for their loving care. Services and interment will be held Tuesday, September 13, 2011 at 2:30 p.m. at Fort Bliss National Cemetery. Donations may be sent to Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, One Intrepid Square, West 46th Street & 12th Ave., New York, NY 10036 or made online at www.fallenheroes.org. Services entrusted to Sunset Funeral Homes West. Please visit our online register book @ www.sunsetfuneralhomes.net