From riding horses to school in 1930s Colorado to helping war refugees find new lives around the world
A Life Hidden in Plain Sight
Laurence “Larry” Metherd was the kind of neighbor you’d love to have. The type who’d wave from his garden, ask about your day, and always have time for a story about his beloved Siberian Husky, Kenosha. If you lived in Castle Rock, Colorado, you might have chatted with him during an evening walk, never realizing you were talking to someone who had lived one of the most remarkable lives you’d never heard about.
Larry passed away peacefully in June 2025 at the age of 96, surrounded by his loving family. But the story of his life — captured in this week’s episode of True Stories from the Obit Files — reveals the extraordinary adventures that lived quietly behind an ordinary smile.
From One-Room Schoolhouse to the World’s Oceans
Born during the Great Depression in 1929, Larry’s childhood was straight out of an American frontier story. By age nine, he was riding his horse “Babe” with his younger brother to a one-room schoolhouse in rural Colorado — just six students total, including two Metherd children. His daily responsibilities included pumping water by hand and gathering coal to keep the schoolhouse warm.
But life had bigger plans for this quiet farm boy.
At 17, after leaving school early to help his father on the farm, Larry joined the Merchant Marines and found himself stationed in Bremerhaven, Germany. His mission? Transporting war refugees from the devastated port city to new lives around the world — Australia, Venezuela, Italy, and beyond.
Picture this: a young man from the Colorado plains helping desperate families climb aboard ships with everything they owned stuffed into battered suitcases, carrying them toward hope and new beginnings across the globe.
Paratroopers, Harleys, and Fire Trucks
When the Korean War began, Larry was called to Army service while on a mission in Venezuela. He completed jump school at Fort Benning, Georgia, earning his wings after 18 parachute jumps. As a Corporal in the 11th Airborne division, he served his country once again before riding home from Nashville on his beloved 1947 Harley-Davidson — chrome exhaust pipes gleaming, making an impression on everyone who saw him cruise by.
Back in Denver, Larry met Shirley Ann Snellgrove on a blind date in 1954. They married and spent the next 65 years proving that some love stories really do last forever, raising three children: Ranae, Guy, and Tina.
Larry worked as a diesel mechanic for decades, but at age 49, he made an unexpected career change. After studying for and earning his GED, he joined the Denver Fire Department, spending 14 years keeping fire trucks running and ready to respond to emergencies. His family remembers him saying he enjoyed going to work every single day.
The Music, the Memories, and the Welcome Mat
Retirement revealed Larry’s many passions: rebuilding Volkswagens in his garage, devouring Louis L’Amour westerns, and sharing his love of bluegrass music. Gerald Block, a friend from Texas, remembered camping trips to bluegrass festivals and jam sessions in Larry’s backyard, but mostly he remembered Larry as “a kind, generous, and good friend.”
Donna Johnston, who spent her high school years at the Metherd house as Tina’s best friend, captured something essential about Larry and Shirley’s home: “We had many giggles, celebrations & everlasting fun. As a young woman I was effortlessly loved and appreciated there.” It was the kind of place where teenagers felt safe to be loud and silly, where everyone was welcome.
Mary Davis, a neighbor who would chat with Larry during her evening walks, said he always had time for stories. Joel Blomquist called him “one we all would do well to emulate” — a man whose sense of humor and willingness to help made everyone feel welcome.
The Invisible Extraordinary
What strikes you most about Larry’s story isn’t just the remarkable adventures — though helping war refugees and jumping out of airplanes certainly qualify as remarkable. It’s how he carried all of that experience so lightly, transforming it into the kind of steady presence that made everyone around him feel valued.
People like Larry are safe harbors in a world that’s always rushing somewhere else. They’ve seen enough of life to know what really matters, and somehow they make everyone around them feel like they matter too.
A Legacy Worth Remembering
Larry is survived by his daughters Ranae and Tina, eight grandchildren, two great-granddaughters named Ella and Ellie, and countless neighbors and friends who were lucky enough to hear his stories and share his laughter. His beloved wife Shirley and son Guy preceded him in death.
His story reminds us that extraordinary lives are happening all around us, often hidden behind the most ordinary moments. The friendly retiree tending his garden might have once helped refugees flee war-torn countries. The patient neighbor who always has time to chat might have jumped from airplanes and trusted his life to silk and string.
Makes you wonder, doesn’t it? How many people like Larry are out there right now, living quietly in neighborhoods just like yours — former paratroopers tending gardens, world travelers walking dogs, unique people hiding in plain sight.
Listen to Larry Metherd’s complete story on True Stories from the Obit Files, available on all podcast platforms. New episodes share the extraordinary lives of ordinary people every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
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True Stories from the Obit Files honors real people through respectfully told stories based on publicly shared obituaries. If you have a story you’d like us to consider, please reach out.
Transcript
[0:00] You’re walking past a house in Castle Rock, Colorado, where an older man is working in his garden with a massive Siberian husky laying in the shade nearby.
[0:10] The man looks up and waves, hey! You know, the kind of genuine smile that makes you slow down for a chat. Maybe he tells you about Kenosha, his beloved dog, or shares a funny story about the old days at the fire department.
[0:26] Just another friendly neighbor, right? But those hands gently tending tomatoes once held war refugees and helped them climb aboard ships in foreign harbors. That voice asking you about your weekend once shouted, Geronimo! While jumping out of airplanes over Georgia. Hi, I’m Steve Rode and this is True Stories from the Obit Files. A few times every week, I share one real story from a real obituary. About someone whose life you never knew about. These aren’t celebrities or headlines. No, they’re just regular people who lived extraordinary lives right under our noses. Lawrence Matherd, everyone called him Larry, was 96 when he passed away in June of 2025. Surrounded by his family, he was born during the Great Depression in 1929, in Englewood, Colorado. He became the kind of man who never met a stranger and somehow made everyone feel like an old friend.
[1:40] But here’s what I didn’t expect when I kept reading his story. Picture this. It’s 1938, and nine-year-old Larry is saddling up his horse, Babe, on a farm in southeastern Colorado. Every morning, he and his younger brother ride to the one-room Springdale Schoolhouse, just six students in total, and two of them are the Mathard children.
[2:09] I can imagine the creak of leather saddles, the sound of Babe’s hooves on a dirt road, and those two boys racing all the way home.
[2:19] The schoolhouse had a little barn where Babe waited all day, munching on grain and hay that Larry’s dad delivered by tractor to her manger. Larry’s chores at the schoolhouse? He had some. He had to pump water by hand from outside, and you can almost feel that coal metal handle, hearing the squeak of the pump. And gather coal for the stove that kept everyone warm through those Colorado winters. That schoolhouse still stands today, which means somewhere in Colorado, there’s a building that remembers the sound of Larry’s boots crossing the floor, carrying buckets of water and coal for the stove.
[3:01] The family kept moving as Larry grew up. Following work Following opportunities, Following the pull of the American West, When Denver got hit by that legendary blizzard of 1946, Larry and his family were living in a 15 by 15 foot canvas army squad tent While they built their new home, Picture waking up in the middle of the night To the tent roof collapsing from the weight of all the snow Everyone scrambling in the dark and the cold I like to think Larry was probably the one making jokes about it the next morning, helping dig everyone out with his wicked sense of humor. His family would remember his humor for the next 80 years.
[3:48] But here’s where Larry’s story takes a turn that would make your head spin. At 17, after years of helping his father on the farm, instead of finishing high school, Larry followed his older brother’s footsteps and signed up for the Merchant Marines. Imagine this quiet farm boy who knew the smell of hay and horse leather, suddenly standing on humid Florida docks during training in St. Petersburg, Breathing salt air and diesel fumes Surrounded by men speaking languages He’d never heard before Then he was shipped out of New York Harbor To Bremerhaven, Germany Where he began transporting war refugees From the devastated port city To new lives around the world Amsterdam, Naples, Australia, Venezuela Through the Suez Canal to the Dutch East Indies.
[4:41] Can’t you just picture 21-year-old Larry standing on deck as refugees’ families, desperate for a better future after war-torn carnage, climbed aboard with everything they owned stuffed into battered suitcases, speaking in whispers, clutching children’s hands? The farm boy who used to pump water by hand Was now helping people find their way to new worlds And new lives Carrying hundreds of families towards hope Then, while Larry was in Venezuela On one of those refugee transport missions The army called him to service The Korean War had begun And the draft was pulling young men like Larry Into a new conflict One week of leave at home and then boot camp at Fort Riley, Kansas, followed by jump school at Fort Benning, Georgia. Eighteen times, Larry jumped from airplanes shouting, Geronimo! Though you’d never guess it watching him gently tend his garden. He served as a corporal in the 11th Airborne Division.
[5:49] When he was discharged in 1952, Larry rode home from Nashville, Tennessee to Colorado on his beloved 1947 Harley-Davidson motorcycle. Picture that classic post-war machine with its big V-twin engine, chrome exhaust pipes, gleaming in the sun, and that unmistakable rumble.
[6:13] I bet he left an impression on anyone that saw him cruise by. A 23-year-old veteran with stories from around the world, writing back to the mountains that raised him. Back in Denver, Larry met Shirley and Snellgrove on a blind date. They married in 1954 and spent the next 65 years proving that some love stories really do last forever.
[6:38] Together, they raised three children, Renee, Guy, and Tina. Larry used his GI Bill to train as a welder and mechanic He worked 10 years at White Star Garage And then 17 years at White Motor Company as a diesel mechanic But in 1978, when he was 49 His younger brother Jerry convinced him to try something completely different, Larry studied for his GED Passed the test And joined the Denver Fire Department as a diesel mechanic, Now picture it, the former paratrooper crawling under fire trucks, hands covered in grease, making sure that when someone called 911, the equipment would be ready to roll. He spent 14 years keeping those trucks running, telling his family he enjoyed going to work every single day to do what he loved.
[7:35] After retirement, Larry and Shirley’s life painted a rich portrait of someone who never stopped being curious. He rebuilt Volkswagens in his garage I mean, I can imagine him with parts spread across newspaper Oil under his fingernails Probably humming along to bluegrass music on the radio, He devoured Louis L’Amour Westerns And became legendary in his family For his skills at the card game 13, Gerald Block, a friend from Texas Remembered going on bluegrass camping trips with both families Imagine Larry on those camping trips the former paratrooper, sitting around a campfire with his guitar, leading songs that echoed across entire campgrounds. But mostly, Gerald said he remembered Larry as a kind, generous, good friend. Here’s what you couldn’t see from the sidewalk when Larry was watering his flowers.
[8:32] Those gentle hands that waved to neighbors had once helped desperate families climb aboard ships in foreign ports. That friendly retiree with the Siberian Husky Had once helped people flee war-torn Germany For new and better lives.
[8:48] Donna Johnston, who spent high school years at the Mathard House as Tina’s best friend, said their door was always open. She said, we had many giggles, celebrations, and everlasting fun. She remembered, as a young woman, I was effortlessly loved and appreciated there. The Mathard House was the kind of place where teenagers felt safe to be loud and silly. where Larry probably made jokes from his favorite chair while Shirley made sure everyone had enough to eat. Mary Davis, a neighbor who would chat with Larry during her walks, said he always had time for stories, and Joel Blomquist called him, One we would all do well to emulate, a man with a great sense of humor who somehow made everyone feel welcome. People like Larry, They’re safe harbors in a world that’s always rushing somewhere else. They’ve seen enough of life to know what really matters, and somehow they make everyone around them feel like they matter too. The paratrooper became the patient neighbor. The world traveler became the guy who always had time for a story. Larry passed away peacefully in June, surrounded by his loving family. He survived by his daughters, Renee and Tina, eight grandchildren, two great-granddaughters named Ella and Ellie, and countless neighbors and friends who were lucky enough to hear his stories and share his laughter.
[10:18] Larry’s life included war refugees and parachute jumps, Harley rides and fire department camaraderie, bluegrass jam sessions, and 65 years of marriage to his beloved Shirley.
[10:30] But the story people will remember longest? the way he never met a stranger and somehow made everyone feel like an old friend. Makes you wonder, doesn’t it, how many people like Larry are out there right now living quietly in neighborhoods just like yours? Former paratroopers tending gardens, world travelers walking dogs, unique people hiding in plain sight.
[10:55] If stories like this matter to you, make sure you’re subscribed. I share a new one every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. And if you know someone who’d love meeting Larry through his story Please share this episode with them These are stories about people like you People like me People with ordinary, extraordinary lives And stories worth hearing, Thanks for letting me tell this one.