Sharon Cromwell

Edwards Memorial Funeral Homes - University Place

Altogether<br/>4307 Vineland Road, Suite H-17-19, Orlando, FL 32811<br/>For more information, visit our website at <a href='www.altogetherfuneral.com'>www.altogetherfuneral.com</a><br/>Copyright © 2025 FPG Intermediate Holdco, LLC

Donald (Don) Earl Specht peacefully passed away on December 17. 2023 after a long illness.  He was born in Gering, Nebraska on April 22, 1936, the firstborn child of Lydia and John Specht.  His parents had roots in Nebraska, but they set out for greener pastures in Maywood, Illinois where Don went to elementary school and high school.  During his time at Proviso High School, he participated in football, baseball and choir, graduating in 1955.  In June 1950, he had the opportunity to attend the Boy Scouts of America’s National Jamboree in Valley Forge, PA.  He remained active in scouting working as a counselor at Camp Ben Delatour for several summers while in college.  He worked for the city of Maywood after graduating from high school reading utility meters until he left the Chicago area in 1957 to attend Colorado A & M (later Colorado State University) initially studying forestry, pursued civil engineering, and then mathematics receiving his Bachelor of Science degree, majoring in Physical Sciences in 1961.  Needing to work to pay his college expenses, he was a server at the Rainbow Café for four years and an employee for Woodward Governor as a drill press operator where he lost the middle finger of his right hand in 1959.  He was active in the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity where he made lifelong friends.  He met the love of his life on a blind date to a fraternity dance set up by mutual friends in February 1963.  They were married at CSU’s Danforth Chapel on October 25th, 1963. 

Don began his teaching career as a student teacher at Longmont High School under the tutelage of Bill Short in 1961, teaching mathematics.  That fall he began his 33-year career as a teacher of math and science. While at Longmont Junior High, he began his involvement in the St. Vrain Valley Credit Union and his activism in the St. Vrain Valey Education Association.

On April 16, 1964, twin sons, James Kevin and Jeffrey Earl were born prematurely.  Sadly, Jeffrey passed away 27 hours later.  After 7 weeks in the NICU, James went home to Loveland.  In 1965, they moved from Loveland to Longmont.

In 1966 he was awarded a four-year National Science Foundation grant to earn his Master of Teaching Science degree at Idaho State University.  Each summer he attended classes for 6 weeks in Pocatello, bringing his young family with him three of the four years.  He became the math department chair when Longs Peak Junior High School opened in 1969.  Don graduated in 1970 with his master’s degree from ISU.  When the new Niwot High School opened in 1972, he was selected to be the chair of the math department.  That same year their youngest son, Jayson, was born.  Early in 1973, they moved into their new home in Niwot where they lived for the next 29 years. In 1978 Don was selected to open the new Skyline High School as math department chair.  He finished his teaching career there in 1992. 

Don enjoyed coaching baseball in his early years of teaching and bowled every Thursday night with a group of educators for over 25 years, His love of golf began in the early 70’s and continued until severe back issues forced him to stop playing when he was 82.  He learned to ski when his boys were young and enjoyed many years trying the slopes in Colorado, mostly at Winter Park where they had a mountain condo for 10 years.

Early in his career, he was active in the local education association serving in several offices over the years, including treasurer, and building representative prior to serving as president in the early 70’s.  From there he also became active in the state and national associations.  He was a skilled negotiator for the teacher’s association and won Colorado Education Association’s Diamond Award for his outstanding contributions to the advancement of teacher bargaining in the state of Colorado in 1990.   He was also active on several of the National Education Association’s committees including the Resolutions committee.  Later he served again as president this time with full time release from teaching in 1992-94. He retired in 1994.

Don and Sally loved to travel.  First it was camping in a tent, then a small 19’ trailer.  Later after retirement, it was a long 27-foot trailer towing with a jet ski.  In addition to camping, they visited many cities across the U.S. attending various conventions, meetings and trainings because of his involvement in the Saint Vrain Valley Credit Union (later merging with Elevations Credit Union) and the Colorado and National Education Association.  They also loved to cruise and were able to see a bit of the world.  In 2001 after searching for a second home in a warmer climate, they built a home on a golf course in Mesquite, Nevada and moved in 2002.  That same year they had the opportunity to sell the house in Niwot (and all its yard work) and build a patio home in Loveland near Marianan golf course.  They enjoyed ten years of splitting their time between Mesquite and Loveland so Don could continue his involvement as a board member with the credit union.

Don was active in the Lutheran faith as a member of First Lutheran Church in Longmont serving several terms on the church council and singing in the choir and later as a member of King of Glory Lutheran Church in Loveland.   

Don is survived by his wife, Sally, his son, James (Tammy), with their children Christopher (fiancée Megan Stringfellow) and Jordyn, his son Jayson, (Sherri) and their children, Isaiah (fiancée Callie Mundy) and Kaden.  Don also leaves behind 3 sisters, Barabara Roberts(Bob), Shirley Noreen (Keith) and Debra(Richard) Hosmer, numerous nieces and nephews and cousins. He was preceded in death by his son, Jeff, brother, Jim and his parents.

Memorial Service will be held February 17, 2024 at 11:00AM at King of Glory Church, 2919 Wilson Ave, Loveland CO 8538. 

 

In leiu of flowers please feel free to make a donation in Dons' names to these organizations Don supported:

King of Glory Church 

Alzheimers Assossiation

When words can't fully express what we want to say, sometimes a small gift can. Visit our Memorial Store for personalized gifts, keepsake jewelry and to plant a memorial tree.

We use cookies to improve your browsing experience and analyze site traffic.
<privacyLink>Privacy Policy</privacyLink>.

<firstParagraph>We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze how you use this website, store your preferences, and provide the content and advertisements that are relevant to you. These cookies will only be stored in your browser with your prior consent.</firstParagraph><secondParagraph>You can choose to enable or disable some or all of these cookies but disabling some of them may affect your browsing experience.</secondParagraph>

<firstParagraph>We use cookies to help you navigate efficiently and perform certain functions. You will find detailed information about all cookies under each consent category below.</firstParagraph><secondParagraph>The cookies that are categorized as 'Necessary' are stored on your browser as they are essential for enabling the basic functionalities of the site.</secondParagraph>

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with customized advertisements based on the pages you visited previously and to analyze the effectiveness of the ad campaigns.

Analytics

Functional cookies help perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collecting feedback, and other third-party features.

Functional

Necessary cookies are required to enable the basic features of this site, such as providing secure log-in or adjusting your consent preferences. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable data.

Necessary

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

Performance

Customize Cookie Preferences

Verification Successful!

New Message

The following files could not be uploaded

Ways you can honor {memorialName}'s memory:

Donation Link

Upcoming Event

Featured Mementos

Welcome Message

Select an item to highlight

Add a highlighted item

Customize which items you’d like to highlight on the memorial

Create Account

Become a Keeper

As a free {brandName} user, you will only be able to make 5 photos and videos public.

As a free {brandName} user, only the first five (5) Mementos are visible to page visitors. You can change which Mementos are public by dragging and dropping a photo or video to one of the first five positions. Upgrading to {brandName} Plus will make all 10 Mementos selected visible to the public.

All Mementos

This option is only available to Keeper Plus users.

To allow yourself and the rest of the community to view all images and videos, and to enable everyone to download their own copy of these mementos, upgrade your account to Keeper Plus.

This memento is not visible to visitors

Your community has posted {itemCount} more pictures and videos that honor {firstName}'s memory. To view them all, and to enable everyone to download their own copy of each, this account will need to upgrade to Keeper Plus.

View all images and videos with Keeper Plus

Our Obituary Assistant helps you craft a meaningful life story in minutes. Review and edit every detail, and unlock more features with Keeper Plus.

Obituary Assistant

Spend as much time as you need working on your Memorial page before it is visible to the public, and much more, when you upgrade to Keeper Plus.

Save Page as Draft

Create unlimited event pages and unlock a suite of powerful features to help you seamlessly coordinate event details, invites, and more when you upgrade to Keeper Plus.

Event

Create a full picture of your loved one’s community and add unlimited family and friends to Loved Ones when you upgrade to Keeper Plus.

Loved One

Create unlimited Memorials — and unlock unlimited images and videos, event pages, and advanced privacy settings — to help you keep memories alive when you upgrade to Keeper Plus.

Memorial Page

Add unlimited Stories to highlight the all the things that made your loved one unique, from milestones, images, albums, documents, locations, and much more.

Highlight Stories

Upgrading to Keeper Plus means you can add additional Keepers to help you gather Mementos and tributes, approve content, build out a family tree, and tell {firstName}' story on Keeper.

Invite Keepers with Keeper Plus

Upload and display unlimited photos and videos, use unlimited Story templates to highlight key moments, and allow friends and family to download their own copies when you upgrade to Keeper Plus. 

Better Mementos with Keeper Plus

To access memorial related configurations that control the display of the banner upgrade to Keeper Plus.

This configuration  is not available on your current plan

Create a meaningful link path to add a personal touch to {firstName}'s memorial.

Custom Memorial link

Gift Messages

SENDING AS A GIFT?

Cart

About 1-800 Flowers

"Flowers were beautiful and they arrived in time before the funeral. Thank you and will purchase more in the future.!"

Hearing Tears

"Beautiful flowers, I've always enjoyed sending them to my love ones for sympathy and they have always love them very much Thanks for making people feel good when receiving them."

Sympathy

"This was true to the photo and good to know family took arrangement after the service."

Beautiful arrangement.  Perfect size for service.

Some of the great things our customers say about us

We're here to make it a little easier, with thoughtful gifts for the services & home, along with expert advice on how to be there during a difficult time.

Flowers

Gift Baskets

Express Your Deepest Sympathy

About Us

Perfect Condolence Gift

No one is meant to grieve alone

Peace and love

Product is made, packaged, and sent with love

Keepsakes

How to add your gift message

Packaging Information

Shipping information

Add a Personalized Charm to the Ornament:

Other Keepsakes

Install KeeperQR onto any headstone, urn, or other memorial in minutes.

Install

Use your phone or tablet to scan the unique code — no other tools required!

Scan

All three of our elegant KeeperQR designs are printed using durable, weather-resistant aluminum designed for indoors and outdoor use on headstones and urns, memorial benches and trees, or other monuments to your loved one’s life

Built to Last

Get <discount>50% off</discount> Keeper Plus with your KeeperQR purchase

Keeper Basic

Learn About Our Plans

Connect the physical and digital worlds to share your loved one’s life story with friends and family, no matter where they are.

KeeperQR Memorial QR Code Plaques

Planting a memorial tree or bereavement tree is a unique, environmentally conscious way to pay tribute and honor the memory of your loved one. Keeper Memorials is supporting American Forests to plant whitebark pine trees as well as thornscrub trees in select regions of the US and Canada.

Memorial Trees

KeeperQR is designed to pair seamlessly with a Keeper digital memorial. Use our FREE intuitive tools to create biographies, maps, and timelines, share photos and videos, and more with customizable features built to commemorate your loved one’s life’s story.

Powered by Keeper

Lifetime without any hidden costs or subscription traps

One time payment

Keeper is SOC2 compliant, keeping your memories safe and secure.

Data protection guaranteed

We bring your QR Codes to any corner of the globe

Worldwide Shipping

Our durable and beautiful QR code plaques create seamless connection between your loved one’s physical memorial and their digital memorial, allowing visitors to their final resting place instant access to their life legacy.

Memorial.

Honor their memory, share their story

A KeeperQR is a weather-resistant plaque with a custom QR code that links directly to your loved one’s digital memorial. When placed on a headstone, urn, bench, or tree, it allows friends and family to scan and view their life story instantly

What is a KeeperQR?

They’re built to withstand outdoor elements and adhere to most surfaces.

Where can I place the KeeperQR?

How does it work?

Frequently asked questions

KeeperQR

E-Certificate Design

Plant Memorial Trees as a Living Tribute

BRAZIL

CANADA

FLORIDA

OREGON

Memorial Project Reach

Memorial trees start at {price} per tree, with discounts for multiple trees

Our Commitment

Gift Baskets & Food

Keeper Plus

QR Plaques

Keepers Featured Products

A Greener Way to Remember

Learn about our Partners:

Help Us Complete Your Order

Remembrance Store

Through your unique link, your client can sign up for Keeper and create a Memorial for a loved one. When the Memorial page is completed by the family, it will appear on your microsite and website. You will be the main Keeper Administrator of the Memorial, along with the family member that created the page.

Invite Your Clients to Create a Memorial

Invite Families

Your Email Notifications

Notifications

Email Unsubscribe Settings

Other Settings

With your active Keeper PLUS subscription, you get unlimited access to a suite of powerful features:

Allow visitors to download a local copy of all images and videos.

Download Media

Create a custom and meaningful URL, unique to your loved one, for each Memorial page.

Editable URL

Plan public or private events and invite your loved ones.

Event Pages

Add images and create profile pages to illustrate the history and genealogy of your loved one.

Family Tree

Invite unlimited administrators to help you manage every Memorial page you have.

Keeper Administrators

Visitors enjoy unrestricted access to all uploaded images and videos.

Unlimited Media

Create unlimited Memorial pages for your loved ones.

Memorial Pages

You will be able to upload Full HD videos instead of embedded links.

Video Uploading

Your Profile

Add a business user

Edit a business user

Are you sure you want to delete these users from these brands? You will need to manually add these users again.

If the user is a part of multiple brands, you will have to delete the user from each one individually

Delete Users from Brands?

Users Settings & Notifications

Users

Are you sure you want to delete these users? This action will revoke their privileges across all brands.

Are you sure you want to delete this user? This action will revoke their privileges across all brands.

Delete Users from all Brands?

Delete User from Brand?

Are you sure you want to delete {totalDeletes} from this user?

Delete Roles from this User?

Are you sure you want to delete this user from this brand? You will need to manually add this user again.

Delete User from this Brand?

Requires users to confirm their email every time they would like to share a tribute on a Memorial page.

When Email Tribute Validation is turned OFF, Guest users do not need to confirm their email address before their tribute is published.

When Email Tribute Validation is turned ON, Guest users will need to confirm their email address before their tribute is published. They will receive an email with a confirmation link they must click.

Requires users to confirm their email only the first time they would like to share a tribute on a Memorial page.

Email Tribute Validation

If Flagged Content is turned OFF, content that has been flagged will remain public until they have been Approved or Removed from the Requests Center.

If Flagged Content is turned ON, content that has been flagged will be hidden until they have been Approved or Removed from the Requests Center.

Hide Flagged Content

Language

Email Notifications

Are you sure you want to delete the Memorial for {name}? This action will permanently remove the memorial from the system.

Delete Memorial?

When Memorial Request Moderation is turned OFF, Memorials will automatically be published.

When Memorial Request Moderation is turned ON, Memorials will only be published if and when you approve them. Memorials can be published or deleted in the Requests center.

Memorial Request Moderation

Moderation Settings

This will permanently delete your account. The business account, and business page will not be deleted. To deactivate your account, there must be another admin user assigned to your organization.

Are you sure you want to deactivate this account?

When Override Tribute Moderation is turned OFF, the tribute moderation settings on Memorial pages will be hidden and other Keepers cannot override the tribute moderation settings specified by your organization.

When Override Tribute Moderation is turned ON, other Keepers can view and change the tribute moderation settings of the Memorial pages they manage. (Each Memorial page will default to the organization’s tribute moderation setting upon creation.) 

Override Tribute Moderation

If the AI Content Moderation is OFF, text areas containing profane language will be published.  Tributes can however be flagged and removed at any time.

If the AI Content Moderation is ON, text areas containing profane language will not be published and the user will receive an error message.

AI Content Moderation

When Tribute Moderation is turned OFF, Tributes will automatically be published. Once published, users can flag inappropriate or spam content. You can instantly delete any Tributes published on a Memorial that you administer.

When Tribute Moderation is turned ON, Tributes will only be published if and when you approve them. Tributes can be approved or rejected in the Requests center.

Donald Don Specht Obituary | Altogether