Joseph (Joe) Lee Briggs |
| Posted 2016-01-22 by Sharla |
| The Daily Courier, Prescott, Arizona, Wednesday, January 13, 2016 Joseph Briggs, 90, born Feb. 14, 1925 in St. Joseph, Missouri, passed away Jan. 10, 2016 in Prescott, Arizona. Arrangements by Arizona Ruffner Wakelin Funeral Home. ~~~~~~~~~~~ The Daily Courier, Prescott, Arizona, Sunday, January 24, 2016 Joseph L. Briggs left this world to go on his final round up on Jan. 10, 2016 in Prescott, Arizona. He was born February 14, 1925 near Kansas City, Missouri. His parents were Samuel E. and Merri S. Briggs. He was raised in the Pacific Northwest and the Bay Area, and spent summers working at a friend of the family's ranch in Arizona, where he began his lifelong love of working with cattle and horses. Joe was accepted to the School of Veterinary Medicine at Colorado State in Fort Collins and graduated with a doctorate in veterinary medicine in 1947, specializing in large animals. He spent summers working ranches in Colorado and Arizona. He began his veterinary practice in Springerville, Arizona. He made his way to Prescott where he met his future wife, Felice Ann Mignella at a charitable Christmas Ball. They were married Aug. 28, 1954 at Sacred Heart Church in Prescott. They had two children while living in Prescott then moved to California in 1957 where he went to work for Jessop's dairy until 1966. They had two more children in California. In 1966, the family moved to Cypress California where Joe was a partner in a private veterinary practice in Orange County, California. During this time in California, he successfully hunted a Big Horn Dall sheep in Alaska, which he was quite proud of. Golfing and poker were his main hobbies, which he continued to enjoy after moving back to Arizona. He retired from veterinary practice in California in 1982, when he and Felice moved to Chino Valley, Arizona, where he built his home himself from the ground up. During his retirement years, he was involved in many activities. These included hunting, wood cutting, volunteering with the YCSO Jeep Posse Search and Rescue, and going on round ups with his longtime local ranching friends. He also worked on forest fires as a contractor with the Forest Service shuttling supplies and personnel back and forth from base camp to the fire lines. Most recently, he was passionately involved in telling the history of ranching in Yavapai County. He put together a presentation, which he gave to various groups, including the Westerner's International where in 2009 he received an award for his "Spring Works 1905 to 2005." In 2013 he was interviewed for, and recorded an oral history of his life, titled "Living Beyond the Edge of the Sidewalk". Joe was preceded in death by his sister Marilyn Briggs and his wife Felice. He is survived by his four children, Matt Briggs, Cathy (Glenn) Howden and Nancy Bourassa, all of Prescott, and David Briggs of Tucson; along with his four granddaughters Meghann Briggs, Alicia (Adam) Bourassa Hudson, Erin Howden and Kelsie Howden. There will be a memorial service at 2 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 29, 2016, at Arizona Ruffner Wakelin Funeral Home, 303 S. Cortez St., Prescott. All who knew Joe are welcome to attend. In lieu of flowers, please donate in Joe's name to whatever charities are closest to your heart. Arrangements were entrusted to Arizona Ruffner Wakelin Funeral Home. Information provided by survivors. See Also: Find A Grave |
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