Obituary of Louise Catherine Mohler

Louise Catherine Duenweg entered this world on June 13, 1926, the fourth of five children born to Louis C. and Hilda Duenweg. From the beginning, Louis fondly referred to Louise as “Toots”, a name that stuck with her all of her 91 years. Louis was the Union Pacific Railroad Station Agent in Agate, so Toots and her siblings, Paul, Leona, Lois, and Son (Louis Jr.) grew up calling the Agate Depot their home. There are many fascinating photos of their childhood and young adult lives with the depot as the backdrop. The Duenweg clan was a fun loving, tight knit family, and they remained that way throughout their lives. On July 13, 1946, Louise married Robert (Bob) Mohler. Bob, a WWII veteran, purchased the Conoco station in Agate shortly after their marriage. Bob operated the station for the next 25 years. In October of 1947, at the age of 21, Louise began her career with the United States Post Office as a temporary substitute clerk. Her starting salary was 79 cents an hour. She served as the substitute clerk until September of 1951 when she was appointed the Acting Postmaster. In early 1954, a permanent Postmaster was appointed, and Louise resumed her position as the substitute clerk. On May 13, 1972 she was appointed Postmaster at the Agate Post Office where she served until her retirement in September of 1989, after 33 ½ years of employment with the United States Postal Service. One of the interesting pieces of history that Bob preserved for us is footage of Louise hanging the mail at the Depot so that the engineer could grab it from the moving train to transport to Denver. Bob and Toots were hard workers, but they liked to have fun as well. On weekends they loved to go to Elitch Gardens with friends and dance to the big bands. They loved to travel, and frequently went to the mountains to fish. One of their favorite destinations was the Banana Ranch near Gunnison. Nearly every member of Toots’ family was allowed to tag along for trout fishing at the Banana Ranch with them at one time or another. They also took several trips to California to visit her brothers, Paul and Son, and their families. Evenings and other off times often found them visiting family or friends, playing badminton, golfing, driving through the brakes, bowling, and numerous other activities. In August of 1970, Louise lost the love of her life when a heart attack claimed Bob’s life. She remained a widow for the next 47 years. Although Louise did not have any children of her own, she loved her nieces and nephews, often traveling to visit them or traveling with them. In her younger years, she enjoyed trips to Las Vegas, and in her later years she loved to go to Cripple Creek or Black Hawk to remind her of those Vegas trips. Carol and Debbi fondly remember their first trip to California and Disneyland when they were very young with Toots and their Grandma Lois. Toots loved Christmas. She spent days decorating the inside of her home, and some of us that have seen the amount of decorations that she stored in her attic would tell you that she had more Christmas decorations than some malls at Christmastime. She also loved the lights, and nephews Bob and Daryl made sure that every year she lit up her little corner of Agate. Toots loved her little home in Agate and the friends and neighbors that held a special place in her heart. Sadly, due to health issues, she had to leave her home and spend the final six years of her life between hospitals, assisted care, and full time nursing care. Many of those friends and neighbors were faithful to visit her in the nursing home, write her, made sure that she received weekly visits from her Kitty Cat, looked after her home and yard, took care of her financial and personal matters, and showed their love in many other ways. For those things, the family would like to thank you and let you know that your acts of love and kindness did not go unnoticed. We would also like to thank her caregivers at Lincoln Community Care Center for the care that they provided during her stay, and making her comfortable during her final days. Louise was preceded in death by her husband Bob, her parents Louis and Hilda Duenweg, brothers Paul Gorney and Louis Duenweg, Jr., sisters Leona Moats and Lois Engel, and nephews Bob, Paul and Daryl Engel. She is survived by four generations of nieces and nephews, as well as a host of friends. Memorial contributions may be made to the Lincoln Community Care Center in Hugo, or Agate Community Church.