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Show Memorial Services Scheduled ForBert Loper "If I were to die tomorrow I would want to die on the river." That was Bert Loper's reply re-ply to his doctor who warned warn-ed him against running any more Colorado River rapids. So forty-one miles below Lee's Ferry In the upper stretches of the Grand Canyon Can-yon of the Colorado, a cairn of stone Is standing by a damaged boat and written on that boat Is : "Bert Loper, the Grand Old Man of the Colorado. Born July 31, 1869, Died July 8, 19-49, near mile 25 while rowing his own boat in turbulent waters." That happened twenty-six years ago. Bert was granted his wish, and the river he loved so well claimed him as Its own. Now twenty six years later an unidentified hiker from New Mexico came out of the Grand Canyon on April 2, and told the National Park Service Rangers he had found a human hu-man skull and bones near Cardenas Creek, below Lava Canyon Rapids. The find was on the south side of the river bank, at an old high water mark and near a large pile of driftwood. The river never nev-er gets that high anymore, since Glen Canyon Dam was built. The find was made 32 miles below where Bert's boat was found and Is still there, a mute testimony of his tragedy. tra-gedy. Sheriff Joe Richards of Flagstaff Flag-staff and his staff conducted a thorough Investigation and the conclusion reached was that the remains were those ' of Bert Loper. i r ! r. : h ' !;, r f " "1 ' i v I , Li ' j BERT LOPER Paul SweUzer of the Arizona Ari-zona Dally Sun wrote: "Bert was a non-conformist. Bert spent his life fascinated by the power, the mystery, the beauty beau-ty of a great, turbulent river. ri-ver. In life, In death, he passed pass-ed that fascination to others. He probably didn't make a lot of money, but, boy, did he live! "His own way, his own style, making and achieving his own goals. "His heart and soul were the stuff that makes a man." To Pearl Baker, author of "Trail on the Water," a biography bio-graphy of Loper, the rlverman was also a hero. He comes through the pages of her book a man shaped for a hard life by youthful disaster. The book says, "the main reason that so many people today have enjoyed these fabulous fab-ulous river trips lies in Bert's lifelong publicity campaign. He loved the Colorado deeply deep-ly and he could never tell enough en-ough about Its wonders, the security of Its everlasting red walls, the bright blue sky above, the towering ledges, the crystal air of the canyons, the serenity of the quiet stretches stret-ches of river and the exciting adventure of the rapids a setting for every mood and every man. "Bert Loper felt a great responsibility to the river and to the people who came to him for advice. He respected the river, and he wanted them to; he wanted them to see it as he did, and to love It; he felt set apart to carry the message of the Colorado, and wherever he was or whatever he was doing, this missionary work went on." Now, after 26 years, the Grand Canyon and the river Bert loved so much, have given only a share the rest It must keep forever. Bert Loper's remains will be burled In the Memorial Gardens of the Valley, 10600 S. 17th East, In Salt Lake City, beside his wife Rachel, who died only last Feb. 8. High noon memorial services for Bert will be held In the Chapel of Memorlesof the Memorial Me-morial Gardens on Saturday, May 3. |