Burton ""Burt"" Fred Vance

Burton (Burt) Fred Vance passed away peacefully on April 4th 2016 in Aurora Colorado at the age of 82 surrounded by his family. Burt is survived by his wife, Elizabeth (Betty); daughters and son in laws, Sherri and Randy Norton (Highlands Ranch, Colorado), June and Michael Olson (Vancouver, Washington), Lisa Vance (Castle Rock, Colorado), Denise and Curtis Rodrigues (Vacaville, California); grandchildren, Brandon and Tiffany Norton (Highlands Ranch, Colorado), Eric and Chelsea Martin (Lake Mary, Florida), Joshua Olson (Vancouver, Washington), Megan Olson (Denver, Colorado), Daniel Martin (Campbell, California); Step grandchildren, Jacqueline and Isabelle Rodrigues (Vacaville, California); and sister, Dollee Franklin (Centennial, Colorado). He is preceded in death by his parents, Alvin (Mike) and Opal Vance (Sterling, Colorado); brother, Lloyd Alvin (Sterling, Colorado), and sister, Dorothy Vance (Independence, Kansas). Burt was born on January 29, 1934 in Sterling, Colorado to Alvin Clinton (Mike) and Opal Selma Vance. He graduated from Sterling High School in 1952. He married Elizabeth Jean Schell, the love of his life in 1960. They moved to Fleming, Colorado and continued to farm with his father. In the fall of 1960, he moved to the family farm after his parents moved into the city of Sterling. He continued to farm until 1984 then moved to the Denver area and was employed by the City of Englewood as a Service Worker. He retired after 15 years with the city. Burt and Betty were blessed with four daughters. They remember their dad as a kind, quick witted, generous, and loving man who was deeply spiritual and placed his wife and family before himself and was always willing to help whenever asked. He appreciated simple things, could build and fix anything, and never gave up. To the world, he was tough... we saw the tender side of him – the guy who wasn't afraid to hold his wife's hand and tell us he loved us. Burt enjoyed playing the harmonica and guitar by ear, never from music. He was a humble, soft-spoken farmer at heart and spent many hours building things and tinkering with electronics. He was a member of St. Mark Catholic Church. A funeral is scheduled for Saturday April 9, 2016 at St Mark Catholic Church at 10:00 a.m. St. Mark Catholic Church is located at 9905 Foothills Canyon Boulevard, Highlands Ranch, Colorado, 80129. Memorial Donations are suggested to the family. Please share your memories of Burt and condolence messages with the family below.