Charles 'Bud' Christensen

Funeral service for Charles "Bud" Christensen will take place 11:00 a.m., Monday, March 27, 2017 at Family Life Church with Pastor Marty Crump officiating. Visitation will be held from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., Sunday, March 26, 2017 at Walker Funeral Home. Charles M. "Bud" Christensen passed away March 19, 2017, at his home in Gillette, Wyo., at the age of 96 of natural causes.Bud was born in Sheridan, Wyo., on March 17, 1921, to Frederic "Fred" and Ellen J. Brown Christensen. Because he shared the St. Patrick's Day birthday with Fred's older brother, he was named Charles Milroy Christensen in his honor. When Bud's brother, Jack, who was two years older, was learning to talk, he could not pronounce Charles so they called him "the little Bud", which was shortened to "Bud". The family lived on Pumpkin Creek, in southern Campbell County, Wyo., on the homestead that Fred had filed on in 1907. Bud started school at the age of four, because his mother was home schooling his brother and a neighbor girl, and she had nothing else to do with him. When Bud was seven and a half, his parents sent him to Page Military Academy in Los Angeles, Calif. He attended school there through the sixth grade. For the seventh grade, his mother moved to Gillette and he went to school there. Starting in the eighth grade, he entered University Prep School on the campus of the University of Wyoming, and lived in Sherwood Hall, which was a boarding facility run by the Episcopal Church. He made beds for other students to earn money for room and board. After graduating from "Prep" at the age of 16, he continued to live at Sherwood, serving as a monitor for the younger children. While attending the University of Wyoming, he earned money typing papers for other students. He obtained his Bachelor's Degree from UW in 1941. While attending UW, he was a three-year letter winner in swimming and diving.At the age of twenty, Bud returned to the ranch and began managing the 65, 000-acre ranch that his father had put together. He has been "in charge" ever since. They later called the ranch "Horseshoe Bar Hereford Mill" and formed a partnership including: Bud, his parents (Fred and Ellen), and his brother (Jack). Bud married Alice Lee Mankin on November 27, 1949. They made their home in what had started out to be a bunkhouse on Pumpkin Creek, the northern side of the ranch. Two children were born to them: Janet Kay on August 11, 1951, in Gillette, Wyo., and Robert Frederick, on January 1, 1954, in Casper, Wyo. In 1961, the Horseshoe Bar Hereford Mill was dissolved and Bud and Jack split the ranching property interests. Bud and Alice Lee started their own ranching business. When Janet and Bob started high school, Bud and Alice Lee made sacrifices and lived in separate locations to do what was necessary to provide the children with the opportunity for a good education. While Bud stayed at the ranch, Alice Lee and the children moved to Laramie where they attended the University Prep School, where both graduated high school, as Bud had done. During that time, Bud began expanding the ranching operation. The Horseshoe Creek portion south of Glendo, Wyo., was added in 1973. In 1977, when Bob and Marilyn (Schelldorf of Sundance, Wyo.) were married, Bud and Alice Lee moved to a condo in Gillette, and Bob and Marilyn started their life at the ranch. Bud continued the expansion of the ranching operation with the addition of Beaver Slide Ranch in Custer County, Mont., south of Miles City in 1977. The next additions were in Custer County, Neb., south of Broken Bow. Ash Creek was purchased in 1981 and the South Loup River Unit in 1984. The River has had several smaller additions over the years. Glendo was expanded twice: Elkhorn was added in 1984 and Foxton in 1991. The Thompson Ranch near Lusk, Wyo., was purchased in 2004. This entire operation is now known as CJR Ranch, LLC.Although Bob and Janet were on the ranches, Bud always had an opinion and stayed involved. He developed a vertically integrated operation across three states. His goal was to build a cowherd with fertile, profitable females and feeding animals that produced superior carcasses. He sprayed weeds in Neb. and sorted the replacement heifers and bulls. In addition, he planned and correlated all the projects on the various ranches. For years, Bud and Alice Lee spent a great deal of time on the road, moving equipment and products between the locations, while also being that on-the-ground influence that made everything a success. In later years, when Alice Lee's health failed, he took over the bill paying and deposits for the ranch, which he continued until the day of his death.Bud served on the American Salers Association board of directors from 1983 to 1989. He was very active in promoting the breed. Professional memberships included a 70-year membership in the Wyoming Stock Growers Association. Additionally, he belonged to Montana Stock Growers, Nebraska Cattlemen, and Wyoming Wool Growers Association. He was also a member of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, where he participated on a grading committee.Bud and Alice Lee were proud of their grandchildren. They tried to attend school programs, presentations, sports programs, and other achievements. Bud's birthday was on the 17th, Mark's on the 18th, and James on the 22nd, and they all celebrated together. In 2014, Harlan was born on the 18th and in 2016 Parker was also born on that date. The grandchildren all spent hours on his lap in his chair at the condo in Gillette, and in older years spent hours visiting with him in the kitchen. Bud set high expectations for his family, but was always a strong supporter. He very much embodied and filled the role of family patriarch.In the fall of 2015, Bud was honored by the University of Wyoming's College of Agricultural and Natural Resources with the outstanding Alumni Award. He would always tell people, "I lived in the best time ever. I have seen a lot of changes and gotten to do everything that I ever wanted to."Bud is survived by his daughter, Janet, and son, Bob (Marilyn); five grandchildren, Mark (Erika), Julie (James) Innes, Marci, Angela, and James; and three great grandchildren, Harlan Innes, and Pierce and Parker Christensen. He is preceded in death by his wife, Alice Lee in February 2014, and his brother, John F. Christensen in January 1983.Memorials in Bud's name have been established to benefit the American Salers Association Scholarship Fund, Campbell County Healthcare Foundation Close to Home Hospice House, and Rockpile Museum Association. Memorials and condolences may be sent in care of Walker Funeral Home 410 Medical Arts Court, Gillette, WY 82716. Condolences may also be expressed at www.walkerfuneralgillette.com Funeral Home:Gillette Memorial Chapel210 West Fifth Street Gillette, WYUS 82716