Ute Indian Museum celebrates Jerry Paquette’s legacy

Jerold “Jerry” Paquette is a grateful and generous man who shares the gifts of his heart with others. Sometimes the gift is a warm smile, a friendly handshake or a kind word. And sometimes the gift takes another form, such as a round, plastic-coated, green steel picnic table donated to the Ute Indian Museum in Montrose.

Fond memories

There are some places that just speak to the heart and for Paquette that place is the Ute Indian Museum, located at 17253 Chipeta Road. It’s a place that has held Paquette’s heart ever since his first visit at age 3 when his family stopped by on their way to Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Although the museum hadn’t been built yet, his family often stopped at the site in the early days, when there was only the spring, two grave sites and lots of sagebrush.

“It was nice to have extra water for our radiator and to drink,” Paquette recalled.

The family sat among the sagebrush to eat a snack and enjoy the quiet tranquility.

“Both Mom and Dad were born in Colorado, and we often talked about the Utes while we ate,” Paquette said.

Paquette has an old photograph of himself and his two older brothers from 1947 taken on that first trip to the museum with his family. The siblings are standing in front of the landmark tepee that housed the spring for the nearby farm of Chief Ouray (leader of the Utes) and his wife, Chipeta.

The museum still stands on the 8.65 acres of land that was the homestead of Chief Ouray. The Daughters of the American Revolution purchased the land and donated it for a museum about the Ute Indians in the 1940s. The first building was erected in 1956.

“The first time I saw the museum building I thought it was good for Colorado and good for the Ute tribes,” Paquette said.

It became an important stop to him when he came home once a year to visit.

The Coloradan entertainer

Born in Grand Junction, Paquette graduated from Central High School and then from Mesa Junior College. He went on to the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley to study theater arts. A couple of years into his studies he decided to join the Navy and became a dental technician. He spent five years in the Navy with one year attached to the Marine Corps in Vietnam. He then returned to Colorado and finished his degree.

After he graduated from the university, Paquette discovered the Army had an entertainment division. For the next 30 years, he helped entertain soldiers and their families all over the world. He remembers the enthusiastic “garage bands” made up of different soldiers that performed.

Paquette spent seven years in Washington D.C. at Army Headquarters as the Music and Theater Director of Worldwide Programs. His last project, just before 9/11, was a New Year’s program with Jennifer Lopez.

“I’ve met a whole bunch of people,” Paquette said.

After 30 years, it was time to “come home” and he returned to Grand Junction to be with his mother, who died three years later.

When Paquette returned to Grand Junction, he was still very active in theater including the Broadway Theater League touring groups brought to the City by Mary Price. He was Harve Presnell’s stand-in during the local filming of the “Unsinkable Molly Brown” and became good friends with Debbie Reynolds. He also worked backstage when Imogene Coca appeared in Grand Junction. He remembered escorting her and her giant black poodle around Grand Junction High School while she was walking her dog.

“I’ve had a wonderful career and have touched the lives of thousands of soldiers and their families. I’ve been very fortunate to come in contact with so many wonderful people,” he said.

A green picnic table

Paquette’s association with the Ute Indian Museum has spanned his lifetime, and when he found out about the picnic table program the Friends of the Ute Indian Museum were sponsoring, he remembered how many times his family sat among the sagebrush to eat.

“Let’s do it. Let’s kick it in and get the first one done,” Paquette said.

His generous donation of $600 for the first round picnic table sparked the donation of a second one, this one an ADA-compliant picnic table by Bill and Kathy Porter of Montrose.

The Friends recently hosted a dedication ceremony for Paquette’s gift and to honor him for his lifetime support of the museum.

CJ Brafford, the museum’s director, smudged the new table with sage and offered a blessing for its use. She also blessed Paquette for his kind generosity. She has known Paquette for the last 10 years, visiting with him often when he came to the museum.

Paquette was also awarded a Certificate of Appreciation by the Friends of the Ute Indian Museum.

Paquette has always been very sentimental about the Ute Indian Museum and has a good deal of fond memories of his visits there. It became an important part of his life and filled in the gaps in the land’s history.

“The museum is history that Western Colorado can be proud of. It has always been important to me to have a bit of quiet time on Ouray and Chipeta’s ground,” Paquette mused.

His legacy and fondness for the Ute Indian Museum will live on and he will continue to touch the lives of many new people as they sit at his picnic table and enjoy the museum grounds. They may read the dedication plate affixed to the table and become a part of Paquette’s connection to the history and land that he loves.