March 8, 2024 |
Photo – Pat O’Toole – Courtesy Water Wrights website
Flags are at half staff in Cheyenne and across Carbon County in Wyoming today in memory of rancher Pat O’Toole, whose green fields straddled both sides of Wyoming-Colorado state line on the Little Snake River east of Baggs.
O’Toole passed away on February 25 following a stroke.
Growing up in Florida he was used to open water where he swam and surfed. After marrying Sharon Salisbury who he met at Colorado State University, they moved onto the Ladder Ranch where they began their life’s work in ranching an animal husbandry.
A thoughtful activist for conservation, O’Toole was appointed to the Western Water Commission by then President Bill Clinton. He served as president of the Family Farm Alliance from 2005 until his death.
He was man who knew how to move water and sheep across the mountains of southern Wyoming and northern Colorado.
On Thursday, speaking on the Senate Floor in Washington, D.C. Wyoming’s senior Senator John Barrasso, gave tribute to O’Toole, a man he called an “agricultural icon.”
Senator Barrasso said it was a great joy to know and work with O’Toole.
Senator Lummis also praised O’Toole, saying his stories and infectious smile loomed large and his reputation for finding common ground with anyone.
As if in giving testimony to O’Toole’s ability to bring opposing sides together, Senators Barrasso and Lummis were joined by Colorado Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper, both Colorado Democrats.
Governor Matt Mead said in a statement, “My friend Pat was a true champion of agriculture and the environment. He worked tirelessly throughout his life to protect Wyoming’s water, especially in the Colorado river drainage.”
O’Toole is survived by his wife, Sharon, his three children, Meghan O’Toole-Lally, Bridget O’Toole and Patrick Eamon O’Toole, along with their spouses and children.
