Harold Ross (Sam) Salmon

Harold Ross (Sam) Salmon

Harold Ross (Sam) Salmon, beloved husband, father, grandfather, and great- grandfather, died Wednesday, June 8, 2022, in Placerville, Calif. He was 93 years old.

Sam was born May 10, 1929, to Don and Imo Irene (Rogers) Salmon in Hiattville, Kan. He attended grade school in Hiattville and graduated from Fort Scott High School, where he was class president during his sophomore, junior, and senior years. He was on the track team and lettered in that sport. During these years he was nicknamed “Sam.” The high school and Fort Scott Junior College were in the same building, and it was there that he met Segrid Laughlin, his future wife. He graduated from Fort Scott Junior College in 1949. Sam and Segrid married on Aug. 3, 1952, in Hiattville, Kan. He spent his early working years as a ranch hand and manager on the O’Bryan Ranch near Hiattville, Kan. After graduating in 1960 from Kansas State University with a degree in agriculture economics, he was employed by the agriculture investments division of Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, retiring in 1994. During this time, he managed offices in Manhattan, Kan., and Oklahoma City, Okla., covering the western half of the United States.

Sam and Segrid began spending winters in Oro Valley, Ariz., in 1995 and eventually retired there. Sam especially enjoyed hiking with his family, exploring the Southwest, and playing golf with his “buddies.” An avid sports fan, he enjoyed following Kansas State football and basketball, and Diamondbacks baseball for the 20 years they lived in Arizona and then San Francisco Giants baseball after Segrid and he moved to Placerville, Calif., in 2016. He had a wonderful sense of humor and was generous, caring, and loyal.

Sam was a life member of Hiattville, Kansas Masonic Lodge No. 216, A.F.&A.M. and Perpetual Member of Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, Guthrie, Okla. He was a Kansas State University Foundation Emeritus Trustee, and a lifetime member of the United Methodist Church.

Sam was preceded in death by his parents, Don and Imo Irene (Rogers) Salmon, a sister, Virginia (Salmon) Chambers, and a brother-in-law, Joe Chambers. His surviving family members, who will miss him dearly, include his wife of almost 70 years, Segrid, of Placerville, Calif.; four children and their spouses, Phyllis (Salmon)

and Bryan Hunter of Lawrence, Kan., Denise (Salmon) and Jim Brownlee of Surprise, Ariz., Joe and Cyndy (Reno) Salmon of Placerville, Calif., and Scott and Melissa (Scallan) Salmon of Tomball, Texas; nine grandchildren, Erica Hunter, Nicole (Hunter) Jones, Dan Brownlee, Rebecca (Brownlee) McEfee, Billy Brownlee, Tom Salmon, Jeff Salmon, Melanie (Juneau) Luttrell, and Trevor Salmon; and 14 great-grandchildren.

A private family celebration of Sam’s life is planned for a later date.

If someone asks us what a good man looks like, how he acts and treats others, how he puts his time into what really matters, we would just point to you and say, “There’s a good man. That’s our dad.”