For nearly five decades, the annual Big Thompson Flood memorial in Drake has been sustained by people determined that the memories of July 31, 1976, would never fade.
Now, after helping organize this year’s 50th anniversary observance, Tina Anderson and Kim Emmons are ready to pass that responsibility to others.
“It’s time,” Emmons said simply.
For both women, the annual gathering has always been deeply personal.
Anderson was 9 years old when the catastrophic flood swept through the Big Thompson Canyon. Her best friend and neighbor, 10-year-old Teresa Graham, was among the 144 people who died in Colorado’s deadliest natural disaster. Teresa was one of five victims whose bodies were never recovered.
Anderson’s mother, Barb Anderson, became known throughout the area as “the angel of the canyon” for her tireless efforts to ensure the victims, survivors, and rescuers were remembered every July 31. A longtime resident of Grouse Hollow, she organized and nurtured the annual memorial for years until declining health forced her to step back in 2023. She died in 2024 at age 85.
Emmons’ connection is also personal. Her grandmother, Lois McCargo, died in the flood. In the decades that followed, Emmons’ mother, Marlene Johnson, worked with 1976 Big Thompson Flood Memorial Inc. to honor those who lost their lives, those who survived, and the hundreds of people who responded in the hours, days, weeks, and months after the disaster.
As one generation handed the responsibility to the next, Anderson and Emmons continued the tradition. This year, they are preparing to let it go. Whether someone else will continue organizing the annual memorial remains uncertain. Time will tell.
On Wednesday, a half-dozen volunteers gathered at the Big Thompson Canyon Association building in Drake to prepare for today’s memorial service marking the flood’s 50th anniversary. Some of those sorting through the displays were themselves flood survivors.
Tables in the log community building were covered with newspaper front pages, photographs, and scrapbooks documenting both the disaster and the decades of remembrance that followed. Volunteers arranged displays while discussing the order of Friday’s program.
After this year’s service, much of that history will begin a new chapter. Boxes of photographs, newspaper clippings, memorial programs, and other memorabilia collected over the past half-century will be donated to the Loveland Museum, where they will be preserved for future generations.
“It’s boxes and boxes of history,” Anderson said as volunteers worked around her.
This year’s program also reflects the passage of time and the aging of the survivors and family members. Rather than beginning at 7 p.m., as it has for many years, organizers moved the service to late afternoon.
“As everyone has gotten older, it just makes sense,” Anderson said, noting that many longtime attendees no longer want to drive the winding canyon roads after dark.
The memorial will include speakers reflecting on the tragedy and its enduring impact, along with music honoring those who were lost. Estes Park musician Brad Fitch, known locally as “Cowboy Brad,” will close the ceremony by performing “The Big Thompson Flood,” a song he co-wrote with Marilyn Herrmann.
Nearby, another table told its own story.
Stacks of memorial books, compact discs, and 45 rpm records — once sold to support the annual observance — will be given away to people who attend the memorial. The books and ephemera have sat in storage for years, but organizers decided it was time to place the keepsakes in the hands of people who would value them.
While the public is welcome, organizers emphasize that the memorial on Friday afternoon is intended first and foremost for survivors, first responders, and the families of those who died. The venue is small, parking is limited, and even planning the event requires organizers to think about the same risks that changed the canyon forever.
Emmons recently filed the event permit, which included an emergency evacuation plan. Standing outside the Big Thompson Canyon Association building, she pointed toward the nearby fire station and described the floodplain, explaining how rising water would affect different parts of the property in the event of another flash flood.
Should an evacuation become necessary, attendees would be directed to drive east toward the River Forks Restaurant. The irony is not lost on her. Nearly 50 years after the flood, preparing a memorial still means preparing for the possibility of another flood.
Rain is in Friday’s forecast, something Emmons said seems to happen almost every year. Her daughter has her own explanation.
“She says it’s grandma tears,” Emmons said with a smile.
The gathering will begin with music and light refreshments from 4 to 4:45 p.m., followed by the memorial service at 4:45 p.m. The earlier start allows those attending Larimer County’s Office of Emergency Management remembrance ceremony from 2 to 4 p.m. to travel to Drake. Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and water.
The Big Thompson Canyon Association will also host an open house on Saturday, Aug. 1 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the community center next to the fire station, 1495 W US Hwy 34. There will be a presentation at 1:30 p.m. by author and local historian Sharlynn Wamsley, The Less Told Story, to honor the heroic efforts of citizen volunteers and first responders.
You must be logged in to post a comment.