RMFU Mourns Dave Naibauer

“With the passing of Dave Naibauer,” RMFU President Kent Peppler said, “family farming and ranching lost a lifetime friend.” David Naibauer died Monday, July 12, 2010, at Windsor Health Care Center in Windsor. He was born on April 8, 1917 in Greeley, Colorado. He spent his life farming in northeastern Colorado and was a Farmers Union member for more than sixty years.

Naibauer joined Farmers Union in 1948 in Briggsdale and rose quickly in prominence. He was selected by then-President Harvey Solberg to assist with organizational development across the state, and he played an important role in re-establishing the New Mexico Farmers Union in the early 1950s. In an interview two years ago, he fondly recalled convincing a Fort Collins farmer to trade a coon dog for an RMFU membership. The dog became a fixture in the Naibuaer household.

Naibauer served as president of the Weld County Farmers Union for 14 years, and as president of the Logan County Farmers Union after the family moved to Merino. Dave’s son Roland only recently retired from the presidency of Weld County Farmers Union. “Dave devoted his life to Farmers Union,” said Peppler, a Mead, Colo., farmer. “From calling square dances in Mead to lobbying Congress, he was there for us. We will miss him.”