Charles (Chuck) Richard Hazelrigg, 83, passed away Nov. 17, in Denver, Colo., after an extended illness with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP).
Born in 1933, and raised in Cadiz, Ohio, he excelled in athletics and academics and loved the Boy Scouts. A trip “out west” as a scout triggered his choice, years later, to live in Colorado. Football provided a full-ride scholarship to Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, but academics were Chuck’s priority. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude with a B.S. in Business, majoring in finance and banking. In 1955, Chuck began his 33-year career at the U.S. National Bank in Denver. He held numerous positions at the bank, eventually serving as President, COO and CEO of United Banks of Colorado, a 40-bank holding company.
Chuck’s commitment to the community includes a 25-year tenure as a trustee at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. He served on numerous other boards including Junior Achievement of Metro Denver, the Colorado Outward Bound School and the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Colorado. He raised millions of dollars for DMNS capital projects, land preservation, Girl Scouts and other community efforts. Travel and outdoor adventure, often hiking or biking, took Chuck and Luanne to all seven continents. While his achievements are notable, Chuck will most be remembered as a capable, humble and kind man who loved his family deeply and engaged passionately with everyone he met.
He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Luanne Hazelrigg, brother James Hazelrigg of Jackson, Ohio, and his daughters and their families: Lynn and Steve Hetterich and their children Abby and Callan, Nancy Hazelrigg, and Amy and Greg Burkholder and their daughters Gretchen and Anna. A memorial service will be held in his honor on Friday, Dec. 2, at 2 p.m. at Montview Church, 1980 Dahlia, Denver, Colo., 80220.
Gifts in Chuck’s memory may be made to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science or Cure PSP.