- Date Of Birth: April 26, 1925
- Date Of Death: October 9, 2010
- State: New Mexico
Lewis Thomas Putnam 85, longtime Deming resident passed away Saturday October 9, 2010 at Mimbres Memorial Hospital after a brief illness.
He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Ruth; four children and five grandchildren. Lewis was the loving father of four children: Glenn, Cheryl, Karen and Dierdre. Glenn & his wife, Amy, reside in Sierra Madre, CA. Cheryl and her two children, Cameron and Alexandria, reside in Albuquerque. Karen is a resident of Sacramento, CA. Dierdre & her husband, Don, and their 3 children, Theresa, Laura, and Joe, reside in Clive, Iowa. He is also survived by a younger sister, Mary Waldkirch, of McKinleyville, CA.
Lewis was born to Frank and Lena Funk in Portland, Oregon on April 26, 1925. He moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico in 1939 where he graduated from Albuquerque High School and immediately signed up with the U.S. Army to fight in World War II. While serving with the “night owls” artillery reconnaissance group of General Patch’s Seventh Army, Lewis participated in the landings into Italy and southern France fighting at Cassino, Italy and fighting his way through France and Bavaria on the eastern flank of the allied invasion into France and Germany. Upon conclusion of the war in Europe, Lewis was discharged from active duty into the U.S. Army Reserve and took advantage of the G.I. Bill to further his education at the University of New Mexico where he earned a Civil Engineering degree. He remained in the U.S. Army Reserve during this time, was called to serve during the Korean War, and was discharged from the U.S. Army in 1951.
Between serving our country honorably during two major wars, Lewis met his wife of sixty-two years in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the former Miss Ruth Alene Ripley, whom he married on September 30, 1948.
Upon Lewis’s discharge from active service in the U. S. Army during 1951, he was hired by the State of New Mexico to be their district water engineer initially in Roswell, but soon afterward was sent to establish the State Engineer’s Office for Southwest New Mexico in Deming, New Mexico in December of 1951. As a registered professional engineer and land surveyor, Lewis served as president of the New Mexico Society of Professional Engineers, Southwest Chapter, in 1965. In 1966 & 1967, he was presented with that organization’s Outstanding Service Award. Lewis remained with the District Engineer’s Office for the State of New Mexico for his entire career retiring after 36 years in 1987.
Lewis became very active in all aspects of Deming life where, through his endeavors, he probably touched many people’s lives in some way. As the scout leader for Troop 130, he mentored many of Deming’s young people and was honored as the most outstanding Boy Scout Troop leader within the Gila District.
As a member of the Deming Public Schools Board of Education, his decisions impacted many young people’s education and as Chairman of the City Park Commission he helped establish many of the parks which Demingites enjoy today. He was also a member of the City Planning and Zoning Commission and chaired the Extraterritorial Zoning Commission. Additionally, he served as secretary-treasurer of the Luna County Red Cross and was a board member of the Luna County Association for Mentally Challenged Children.
But these activities were not enough. He was a member of St. Joseph Council 4256 of the Knights of Columbus and served as Grand Knight and Faithful Navigator of the 4th Degree Assembly 1731. The Knights of Columbus serve the Catholic Church where Lewis was an active member and supporter of Deming’s Holy Family Catholic Church. He served as a volunteer office administrator, serving as board member of finance and parish councils.
As in all things Lewis Putnam would not just serve, he had to excel, and during his lifetime he became President of the School Board Association of New Mexico and subsequently served as an officer of the National School Board Association. In recognition of his service to the City of Deming, Lewis was named Outstanding Citizen of the Year in 1970.
Lewis was greatly loved and will be greatly missed by his family and friends.
