Roy Edwin "Ed" Pennington

Roy Edwin "Ed" Pennington
1938 – 2026

Roy Edwin Pennington, known throughout his life simply as Ed, passed away at his Loveland, Colorado home on February 24, 2026, at the age of 87.

Ed was born in Evanston, Wyoming, on April 24, 1938, to Homer Edwin Pennington and Annie Elizabeth Schofield Pennington. It was a difficult premature home birth, and a doctor later remarked that without the devoted care of his grandmother, Lizzie, he might not have survived. Ed was his parents' only child and was dearly loved from the beginning.

As a young boy, then called Eddie, he had blond curly hair and a cocker spaniel named Freckles. He was an explorer at heart. Growing up near a river, he had a tendency to wander, which gave his mother more than a few anxious moments. In one memorable attempt to keep him safe, she tied him by his suspenders with a rope to the backyard clothesline. Ed was not impressed. His loud protests brought neighbors running, and the experiment was quickly abandoned.

His maternal grandparents lived next door, and Ed spent countless happy hours walking with his grandfather, working in the garden, and putting together jigsaw puzzles. He especially loved the fruitcakes his Grandma Lizzie made each Christmas, carefully stored in a large crock on the back porch. That fondness lasted a lifetime. There are still fruitcakes in the freezer today.

In junior high, Ed worked in the school office collecting attendance rolls each morning. It was during one of those rounds that Pat first noticed him. She thought he was "kinda cute."

Ed was a good student and a dedicated athlete. In high school, he played football and basketball. Though he did not enjoy dancing, despite his parents serving as dance directors in their church ward, he faithfully took Pat to school dances. Together they participated in an All-Church Dance Festival at the University of Utah Stadium with the Evanston Second Ward.

After high school, Ed worked at a local garage and service station and completed a correspondence course in auto painting and body work before attending Brigham Young University for a year. He later attended Utah State University, where he studied Tool Engineering.

Ed and Pat were married in the Logan Temple and began building their life together in Logan, Utah. During the summers, Ed worked for the National Forest Service in the High Uinta Mountains. He and Pat lived in a one-room cabin during the week and returned to Evanston on weekends, where Ed also worked at the garage to help pay for school.

After graduating from Utah State University, Ed accepted a position with Hewlett-Packard in Loveland, Colorado, as a Tool Engineer. What began as a job became a 39-year career. Ed was HP through and through. He believed in doing good work, doing it well, and doing it without fanfare.

As a Tool Engineer during a period of enormous technological change, Ed designed and refined the precision tools, fixtures, and systems used to manufacture HP's instruments and equipment. His work required patience, careful attention to detail, and steady problem-solving. He worked closely with machinists and production teams to ensure that parts were built accurately and consistently. Over nearly four decades, he adapted as manufacturing evolved from manual drafting tables to increasingly computerized systems. He took quiet pride in contributing to products known for their reliability and quality.

HP was more than a workplace. It shaped family life as well. The Hewlett-Packard Recreation Area in Estes Park became the setting for many cherished memories. Time spent in the Colorado mountains, fishing, hiking, exploring, and simply being together, became part of the rhythm of their lives.

Ed loved retirement. He found contentment in simple things: visiting family, tending his garden, painting, and living what he once described as "a week of Saturdays."

Ed and Pat especially loved Yellowstone and the Tetons, returning again and again to landscapes that held deep meaning for them. When digital cameras arrived, Ed embraced them enthusiastically. He had the patience to wait for the right moment, whether for elk to step into a meadow or for light to touch the mountains just right. He could have passed for an amateur wildlife photographer, and his family treasures the many images he captured.

Though engineering was his profession, creativity ran quietly alongside it. Many of the paintings that hang on the walls of their Loveland home are Ed originals. Whether behind a camera or holding a paintbrush, he observed the world carefully and recreated it with patience and skill.

Ed was a man of quiet faith and steady service. He served faithfully in many callings, including branch clerk, counselor to two bishops, member of the Stake High Council, and Stake Young Men's President. He spent many years as a Scoutmaster, leading memorable wilderness trips in Colorado and Wyoming. He later served as an ordinance worker in the Denver Temple for 15 years and in the Fort Collins Temple for two more, until health reasons required his release.

He was a devoted son, especially in his mother's later years. Though he built his life in Colorado, he remained a steady support to her in Evanston through frequent visits and faithful daily phone calls.

That same quiet devotion defined him as a husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. He showed up at games, at milestones, and in the steady rhythm of everyday life. In time, he stepped naturally and joyfully into his role as Grandpa and later Great-Grandpa. He was patient and present, always ready with a project at the workbench, a puzzle at the table, a story from the mountains, or gentle encouragement when it was needed. Children felt comfortable beside him. He made space for curiosity, laughter, and unhurried time together. Watching new generations grow brought him deep joy. The steadiness with which he lived continues in the family he built and the generations that follow.

Ed was preceded in death by his parents, Homer and Annie Pennington, and his brother-in-law, Tom Howe.

He is survived by his forever sweetheart, Patricia Johnson Pennington; his children, Rick (Sharon) Pennington, Roger (Garnet) Pennington, Randy (Dina) Pennington, and Megan (Steve) Duckworth; 11 grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren, with yet another on the way; as well as his brother-in-law, Lyle (Lela) Johnson, sister-in-law, Trudy Howe; and several nieces and nephews.

Ed will be remembered for his steady presence, his devotion to family, his lifelong faith, his creativity, and the quiet constancy with which he lived his life. He will be fondly remembered.

Funeral Services will be held Thursday, March 5, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, 1445 W 28th St, Loveland, CO 80538. Viewing will be held prior to the service from 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Interment services will be held in Evanston, Wyoming.