Cal Snell Taggart

LOVELL, Wyo. - Cal Snell Taggart, 80, of Lovell, died Wednesday, April 21, 2004, at the Sun Health Hospice in Sun City West, Ariz.

Cal was born Feb. 6, 1924, in Cowley, to Grant and Fern S. Taggart. He and Irene Dover were married in 1945 and together, they had two children, Todd of Healdsburg, Calif., and Dana Cranfill of Cody.

He leaves his wife of 58 years; his two children; daughter-in-law Mary; son-in-law Steve; and five grandchildren, Grant, Paige and Ian Taggart, and Meghan and Laura Cranfill.

He was a member of the LDS Church and a Navy Veteran of WWII.

Cal graduated with a BS degree from BYU in 1946, and in 1948, graduated from the Institute of Insurance Marketing at Southern Methodist University. He also attended Notre Dame University and the University of New Mexico.

He began as a life insurance underwriter with the Taggart Agency in 1948, serving on numerous councils, chairing many committees, and he was recognized often with industry awards.

His passion was community service, which he began as Mayor of Lovell in 1962, serving for six years. He helped to build and served many local and regional organizations, including the Wyoming Industrial Development Corp., the Wyoming Association of Municipalities, the Big Horn County Hospital Board and many others. He served in the Wyoming State Senate from 1972 to 1984, was on the Senate Judiciary Committee and chairman of the Transportation and Highway Committee and was a driving force in the reconstruction of the Big Horn Mountain Highway, Alternate 14. During this time, he served in an advisory capacity under Gov. Hansen and was appointed by Governor Hathaway to the Yellowstone Centennial Commission and Old West Trail Foundation.

He was one of Lovell's and Wyoming's strongest promoters, until the end.

Along with several other community service awards, he was honored in 1974 with Cal Taggart Day by his hometown, and in 2002, Governor Jim Gerringer recognized his many efforts with the declaration of Cal S. Taggart Day in Wyoming.

A visitation will be held Tuesday, April 27, from 5 to 7 p.m., at Haskell Funeral Home in Lovell. Funeral services will be held Wednesday, April 28, at 11 a.m., at the Lovell LDS Stake Center. Burial will be in the Cowley Cemetery. Haskell Funeral Home, Lovell, is in charge of arrangements.