Family scatters dad’s ashes at the place he loved
Members of Don Peery’s family release his ashes from high atop a mountain.
“Dad was born and raised in Texas. After marrying our mother, who became pregnant with me, he got a job teaching high school science in Tula Rosa, New Mexico. It’s northwest of Cloudcroft (a village within Lincoln National Forest). They would go to Cloudcroft on weekends to camp and hike the trails with me in a baby carrier, from what I’m told. They even filled up jugs with water from the streams there to take home for drinking. Dad loved it there. He thought it was the most beautiful spot in the world.
“But then two more kids came along, and the teacher’s salary wasn’t stretching so far. The kids my dad taught from the Mescalero Apache Indian Reservation were none too happy with him regarding their grades. He actually expected students to work for their grades. So they would come by and shoot at our chickens in the yard. Dad was afraid us children might get hurt, so that was another deciding factor on moving.
“We all moved back to Texas, and Dad took a job at one of the many oil refineries in the area. He hated that job, but it earned enough to take care of his growing brood. He always wanted to go back to visit Cloudcroft, but we never managed to do it. He told us many times over the years about Cloudcroft and his wish to be cremated and scattered there. So we made it happen.”
— Nina Peery
Don Peery passed away in June 2017. Nina Peery is the oldest of eight children. The family gathered to scatter Don’s ashes. They picked the highest spot in Cloudcroft, following a narrow mountain trail to about 8,600 feet elevation.
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