Burton Keen Crupper, 78

Burton Keen Crupper passed away peacefully at home with family by his side March 7, 2025, after a lengthy battle with Parkinson’s disease.

Burt was born Feb. 6, 1947, in Denver, Colo., to Gordon and Ellen Crupper, joining older brother Gordon. During his early years, the family moved frequently due to Gordon’s job. They lived in Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Montana, Idaho and Washington. All of Burt’s high school years were spent in Hamilton, Mont., where he graduated in 1965. During high school, he participated in band, choir, rifle team, track and attended Boys’ State. He played drums with a local band when he was too young to be in the bars where they played, so at intermission, he had to go outside. He was an avid skier and a budding photographer. He served as an acolyte at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Hamilton. During summers in high school, he worked in hay fields in Montana’s Sula Basin.

Burt graduated from Washington State University in 1970 with a degree in Animal Biology. During his college years, he spent summers working for the Forest Service, either manning Long Tom Lookout or fighting forest fires as part of a helitack crew near the Idaho-Montana border.

In 1970, he married Jennifer Joy Gritman. Afterward, they moved to Missoula so Joy could finish her education degree. While there, Burt went back to school and became certified to teach.

After graduating, they moved to Leadore, Idaho, where Joy taught elementary school and Burt taught all the science classes for grades 7–12, plus a class in photography.

After three years of teaching, Burt realized that it was not for him, and so, they moved to Coeur d’Alene, where he enrolled in the auto mechanics program at North Idaho College. After graduating, he worked for Rodell Motors, then the Toyota dealership, before becoming the supervisor of transportation for NIC. He kept everything working from lawn mowers and weed eaters, to chain saws and snowplows, the traveling van fleet and even a Greyhound bus! If it had an engine or was mechanical, he kept it running.

In 1975, they welcomed son Scott into the family. That same year, they bought 20 acres north of town and began to make it their home. In 1983, daughter Jennifer joined the family.

Over the next many years, in addition to his full-time job at NIC, Burt built a house, a barn, a fence and a cross fence on the 20 acres, trained horses, hauled hay for horses, goats, sheep and cows, ran water lines and supported Joy, Scott, and Jennifer in their many activities and adventures.

Burt enjoyed the early fall on his boat at Lake Pend Oreille’s Button Hook Bay, horse packing in Montana, Oregon and Idaho wilderness areas, and restoring classic cars. His favorite restoration was his 1969 Nova.

Burt was preceded in death by his parents, grandparents, and brother Gordon. He is survived by his sister, Jean; his wife of 54 years, Joy; son Scott (Suzanne); grandchildren Joseph, Benjamin and Baylee; daughter Jennifer (John); and grandchildren McKenzie, Madison, Clayton and Maisie.

Services are planned for May 3, 2025, at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Coeur d’Alene. Please join us for lunch and visit from 11:30 to 1:30, followed by a celebration of Burt’s life at 2. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Caldwell Police Mounted Unit or the Kootenai/Shoshone 4-H Horse Program.