Alden Ron Hibbert Obituary (1928 - 2021)

"Alden" Ron Hibbert July 8, 1928 - February 2, 2021 Ron was born in Victor, Idaho. He grew up working on the family farms. A mission to Holland preceded a military service in the Korean War. During this time, he met and married Dolores Spencer. Taking advantage of the GI Bill, he earned his bachelor's degree in Forestry. Smoke jumping was his summer job in college. His forestry degree landed him a job with the US Forest Service in North Carolina. Ron went back to school for a masters degree in Hydrology. While in North Carolina, three children were born; Lance, Wendy and Jennifer. In his youth, during the cold winters in Idaho, Ron and his brother Ned would visit their Uncle Don, a prospector, in Arizona. His love of the southwest led Ron to move his family to Tempe Arizona to join a new forestry lab on Arizona State University campus. With an established career and a rich circle of colleagues and friends, many weekends were spent exploring the west. Dolores and the children spent many summers in Idaho with family. After retirement Ron was able to pursue a passion for gold mining, developed in his early years visiting his Uncle Don in Arizona. Gold mining occupied him for the rest of his life. With the enthusiasm and support of his wife and family, he purchased and began gold mining operations with his brother and partner Ned. During this time period he lost his wife Dolores. The brothers spent the next seven years coaxing gold from the rocks. Once they squeezed the rock dry, they shut down the operation, keeping the property for its beauty and solitude. He became nostalgic and purchased a farm in Buhl, Idaho, escaping the hot Arizona summers. After two years of farming the nostalgia wore off and the desert beckoned. He settled in Yarnell Arizona, "where a desert breeze meets the mountain air". On a driving tour of California's mining country in the Sierra's, he met a lovely docent, Ruby Minard, working at the museum in Angels Camp. They clicked, and were soon married. They enjoyed several years in Yarnell and then moved to Angels Camp, Ruby's lifelong home. They remained there and enjoyed family and travelling. Ron then lost his wife Ruby and again the desert beckoned. Yarnell welcomed him a second time, where he remained until his death. He spent his remaining years building and restoring mining equipment and crafting wooden burr puzzles in his shop. Ron made friends easily with his easy going, gentle manner. He will be sorely missed by his family and friends. He is survived by his children Lance Hibbert (son), Wendy and Dan Lichte (daughter and son-in-law), and bonus daughter Renee Menzes and family. He is preceded in death by wife Dolores, daughter Jennifer, and second wife Ruby Minard (mother to Renee). The family is planning a Celebration of Life in Arizona and in Idaho on a future date. The family requests donations in lieu of flowers to: Hospice of the Pines (mail to:) 13207 E Hwy 169 Suite A Dewey, AZ 86327 Yarnell Regional Community Center https://yarnellrcc.org PO Box 641, Yarnell, AZ 85362