Jesse D. Winzenried

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(June 13, 1922 - Dec. 3, 2013)

Jesse D. Winzenried, 91, of Cody, died Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2013, at Spirit Mountain Hospice House in Cody.

The youngest of five, he was born to Fritz and Margaret Smith Winzenried in Byron on June 13, 1922.

Jesse served in the Wyoming National Guard from 1939-41 and in the U.S. Army in 1942-43. He received an honorable discharge in April 1943.

Jesse received a bachelor of science degree in business administration from the University of Wyoming in 1945 and a master’s degree in government management in 1946 from the University of Denver, where he was awarded a Sloan Foundation Fellowship.

He attended New York University on a New York University Fellowship and was conferred his Ph.D. in administration and public finance in 1955. His dissertation on state financial administration in Wyoming was instrumental in the creation of the first consolidated Wyoming Department of Revenue. Jesse received the Founder’s Day Award for outstanding scholastic achievement from NYU in 1956 and the Alumnus of the Year Award from the University of Wyoming College of Commerce and Industry in 1968.

Jesse worked as a research director with the Wyoming Taxpayers Association from 1946-47, an economist with the Tax Foundation from 1947-51, a consultant with Booz, Allen & Hamilton from 1951-52 and a director of field research with the Tax Foundation from 1952-56.

In 1956, Jesse and family moved to Cody to begin working for Husky Oil Co. and continued through 1967 when he was senior vice president in Calgary. His many years of service were instrumental in the growth and success of Husky Oil. Jesse subsequently served as vice president of Consulting with Booz, Allen & Hamilton in Ohio from 1968-69, vice president of Coastal States Gas Producing Co. in Texas and Colorado from 1969-74 and as group vice president, director and member of the Executive Committee of the Board of Crown Central Petroleum Corporation in Maryland from 1974-81.

Jesse served on the Governor’s Committee on Education as an adviser to Gov. Clifford Hansen and on boards of the Wyoming Taxpayers Association, the Chamber of Commerce, United Fund and the Boy Scouts of America. He also served on the Executive Council of the Conference Board and the General Committee, Division of Refining of the American Petroleum Institute. Following his nomination by President Ronald Reagan in 1988, Jesse served as vice chairman of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation in Washington, D.C.

While at the University of Wyoming, he met Marion Jacobson, whom he married in 1945. Jesse and Marion raised three children and were married until 1984, when Marion passed away. Jesse married Lela Madsen Potomac from La Jolla, Calif., in 1988. Jesse and Lela were active in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, serving for 21 years in three temples. They also were called to serve a reactivation mission.

An avid fly fisherman and bird hunter and a native son, Jesse loved Wyoming. He was well loved by not only his family but by all who knew him. The memories of Jesse and the example he set will always be treasured.

He was preceded in death by his sister Bernice and each of his brothers, Albert, Wayne and Joseph, as well as his first wife, Marion Jacobson (deceased in 1984) and second wife, Lela Madsen Potomac (deceased in 2013).

Jesse is survived by his daughter Suzan (Richard) Carlston of Walnut Creek, Calif.; son Jay (Valerie) of Cody; son Keith (Cynthia) of Langley, Wash.; and stepson Larry (Eloise) Potomac of San Diego, Calif. Jesse has 12 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.

Funeral services will be held for Jesse at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, located at 1719 Wyoming Ave. in Cody, on Saturday, Dec. 14, at 10 a.m. The family has asked that memorial donations be made to the Jesse and Lela Winzenried LDS Scholarship of the Northwest College Foundation. When making a memorial gift, note the Winzenried scholarship in the memo field and send it to the NWC Foundation, 231 West Sixth St., Powell, WY, 82435. Online contibutions are also possible at northwestcollege.org by designating the specific scholarship.  

An online guestbook is available at www.ballardfh.com

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