Carl K. Davidson

Carl K. Davidson was born in Florida in 1927. He is survived by his sister, Neta Kinder; three daughters, Karla Belew (Gary), Karen Davidson (Ron Hasson) and Pandora “Dee Ann” Davidson; four grandchildren, Jessica, Jennifer, Adam and Ryan; four greatgrandchildren, Ashleigh, Baylee, Sydney, and Connor and one great great-granddaughter, Willa; and dozens of cherished nieces and nephews. We will all miss his humor, his fun-loving spirit, his “sea stories”, his zest for life, and his intellectual curiosity. He was blessed with seventy wonderful years married to his wonderful wife, “my little honey” Dee (Dolores) Davidson who died in April 2022. With her he found love, happiness, and security. During his life he experienced adventure, sorrow, joy, confusion, and awe. A few moments of his long and interesting life follow, but these events are not what encapsulate this remarkable and complex man. He wrote that “loving is…supreme”. When he’d talk about someone he’d just met, he would tell his children that they were cousins. Even as children, his daughters understood this meant that everyone they met should be treated with the same respect and care often reserved for immediate family members. Carl enjoyed a good conversation and enjoyed making people laugh. He was strongly opinionated and was happy to pull out references to back up his points, but he counseled his children to always leave a graceful way out for someone you disagree with. He was interested in the world and never lost his desire to learn more about it.
Carl’s early schooling was disrupted by numerous moves between Mississippi and Colorado during the Great Depression and was cut short when he was forced to leave school in the 9th grade. Joining the Navy at age 17 was an opportunity to grow up and to see the world. His lack of formal education did not limit his desire to learn, instead it freed him to pursue whatever interested him at that time. He believed that education brings enlightenment. After his return to Colorado following his discharge from the Navy, he talked his way into a Calculus course at Pueblo Junior College to learn more about mathematics. When he was offered an opportunity to switch from ditch digger to a member of an engineering crew, he jumped at the chance. He learned civil engineering on the job with the railroad and went on to become a Civil Engineering party chief for the City of Pueblo until his retirement.
After meeting Dee at an Elks Dance in Pueblo around 1949 he was smitten and pursued her until she finally agreed to become his wife. They married in 1951 and bought the house they lived in for 70 years in Pueblo in 1954. Carl’s academic interests were wide ranging as were his many different artistic pursuits. His growing family and many responsibilities made formal education difficult, but he never stopped learning. He liked nothing more than to sit and discuss almost anything with friends and family. He loved playing chess, and cards, reading, learning, and widening his horizons. He dabbled in architecture, building, car restoration, cooking, painting, carving, and writing. He and his family enjoyed the cabin he designed and built with the help of his wife and daughters in 1965. The cabin was one of the victims of the 2018 Spring Fire. After a brief foray into religion when his children were young, he became a firm atheist. He was a proud American who wanted to be able to vote in the upcoming November election. In lieu of flowers or other memorials, please honor his memory and vote. It is not only a privilege accorded citizens, but also a civic responsibility he took seriously.