Memorial Saturday for Valley rancher

Family and friends are invited to remember Carson Valley rancher Dallas Byington at a memorial gathering at 11 a.m. Saturday at the family ranch on Genoa Lane.

Byington, a former Douglas County planning commissioner, died May 28 of complications from Alzheimer's disease. He was 76.

Barbara Byington tells friends who offer condolences on the death of her husband of nearly 50 years, that Dallas is in a better place.

Having watched his decline over nine years and the difficulties he had the last three weeks, Barbara believes he is at peace.

"The last three weeks with the pneumonia were miserable," she said. "I know he's in a better place.

"In the end, his body just kind of shut down. He couldn't swallow and aspirated food, which led to pneumonia. We knew this day was coming."

Barbara said Dallas was happiest outdoors.

"He loved just being with the cows and riding horseback," she said. "He loved to go hunting with the boys, but he hiked and did the cooking. He didn't like deer meat."

His memorial will include a Masonic service, a military ceremony to honor his 31 years in the Nevada National Guard, and, at Dallas' request, the song "Tie Me Kangaroo Down" will be played.

"He loved that song," Barbara Byington said. "I have no idea why."

She first met the man who would become her husband when she was 9 and he was 17.

He and his identical twin brother Douglas were raised in Sparks where their parents owned a feed store.

Barbara and Dallas married in 1959 and would have celebrated their 50th anniversary in December. They have a son, Russel.

Although Dallas had no taste for politics, Barbara said he had strong sense of civic duty. That came through in his service in the National Guard - he retired as a colonel - and his commitments at home as a Douglas County planning commissioner, Cub Scout leader and Little League coach.

"When I was assessor, I would look at those maps he had signed as the planning commissioner," she said.

"He knew life has to change, but always thought Carson Valley was so much nicer when there was just a two-lane highway to Carson City," she said.

He served 14 years on the planning commission, seven as chairman. He belonged to the Nevada Beef Council and National Beef Board, serving both as chairman.

He was a 50-year member of the Masonic order and belonged to Carson Valley Lodge No. 33.

The Byingtons loved to travel and hosted foreign students at their home.

After Dallas retired from the National Guard, they made three trips to Brazil to see students who boarded with them, and traveled to Australia, England, Germany, Holland, Bora Bora, Mexico, Canada, Switzerland, France, Italy and Greece.

Barbara said she began to notice the Alzheimer's in 2000 after Dallas was hurt in an accident on the ranch.

"Dal had been getting ready to brand, and he fell, and the horse fell on him. He broke his neck and had to be taken by CareFlight to Reno."

She said he was aware of the Alzheimer's, "but didn't know all that it entailed."

They stayed on the ranch until 2006.

"I couldn't keep track of him inside and outside on the ranch. With all the equipment around, I was worried about what might happen to him," she said.

The Byingtons "moved into town," settling in a home in Minden that backs up to the Mack ranch.

"We became 'city folk,'" Barbara said.

With the they brought Freckles, a life-size Fiberglas cow that sits in the front yard, and Buddy, an 11-year-old border collie who was Dallas' constant companion.

Gradually, Dallas' travels became two daily walks through the neighborhood with Buddy.

"Buddy misses his pal, Dal," Barbara said. "I walk him now and people recognize Buddy and say, 'Where's the man who used to walk that dog?'"

Dallas developed what is known as sundowner's syndrome, a restlessness that kept both of them up all night.

"At night, he had to be moving. I couldn't stay up all night with him and all day," she said.

When Dallas began to require 24-hour care, he moved to Merrill Gardens.

"He liked all the people there," Barbara said. "One of his caregivers said he always wanted to dance with her."

Earlier this year, Dallas developed anger issues which baffled his family, and he was relocated to Senior Bridges in Sparks.

"He never was angry in his life," she said. "He'd get upset if somebody stole our water on the ranch, but he always was easy-going and happy, fun to be around."

Barbara said as friends learned of Dallas' Alzheimer's, more and more people shared their family's experiences.

In Dallas' family, his mother was a twin and so was his father.

Each of them had Alzheimer's, she said.

"Once you start talking about it, it's amazing how people out there have had it, or their families," she said. "In the old days, you wouldn't talk about it."

It was Dallas' wish that his ashes be distributed on the ranch.

"He always thought Carson Valley was a fun place to grow old in, a place where he had friends. To him, it was a beautiful Valley that had caring people in it," she said.