Dr. James Allen

Dearest Friends, Family and Community Members: It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Dr. James Franklin Allen. He ultimately lost his battle with cancer on May 9th, 2015 after fighting bravely for a year. "Doc" was bigger than life, one of a kind....a truly brilliant man. He was a wonderful husband to his wife "Dixie Lee" and a loving father to his four children Cassie, Brandi, Cricket and KayDee. "Doc" was a very involved community member and gave much of his life to his patients in the way of being an amazing surgeon and caretaker. He was a true cowboy and lived his life to the fullest. No one will ever be able to fill his boots. He is survived by wife Dixie, his children and 11 grandchildren. In addition, he is survived by his siblings Charles Allen, John Allen and Margaret Allen. "Doc" was born in Parker, Arizona in 1943 to Mabel and Charles F. Allen. He later moved to Prescott with his family and then on to Ft. Duchesne when he was in high school. He graduated from Union High and met his lovely wife while working as a life guard at the Roosevelt public pool. Dixie and "Doc"moved to Logan where he attended college as a pre-med student. He later did his residency at Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle, Washington where he brought his first daughter, Cassie, into the world. He graduated from University of Utah Medical School in 1969. Jim and Dixie later moved back to Ft. Duchesne in 1970 where their second daughter, Brandi, was born. He worked there as the Ute tribal physician until they moved to Vernal and set up his private practice in 1973. His son Cricket was born in 1974 and his last daughter KayDee was born in 1978. He worked as a very talented physician and surgeon for 40 years until his retirement in 2009. Dr. Allen was involved in many community organizations including the Vernal Area Chamber of Commerce, the Vernal Rotary, the Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo Committee, the rural education committee along with countless other endeavors. He received so many awards in his lifetime, there are too many to name. In addition, he played an integral part in the evolution of the local hospital. The staff, doctors and nurses all respected and loved Dr. Allen very much. "Doc" was known for delivering babies with boots on and many other antics like x-raying a horse at the local hospital. His endless energy bled out into the community in many ways. His great love and pass time was ranching, however. He will always be the eternal cowboy. He spent countless hours working cows, breaking horses, nursing sick animals, roping and rodeoing. The number of rodeo trips and rodeo hamburgers his kids endured were never-ending. It was a family affair and eventually all of his trips became known as "Winnie the Pooh" adventures; we would start on a journey in the morning but never knew where we would end up that night. His other pass times were reading and watching a good movie (usually a western). Even as a young child, Roy Rogers was one of his idols on the silver screen. His aspirations to be "Roy Rogers" led Jim on many adventures in his lifetime. Many were dangerous and risky. In the end, he left with less fingers, steel parts in his body and too many broken bones to count. He used up his nine lives a million times over, but he knew how to live!!! We hope you will join us for an open house memorial in honor of his amazing life. It will be held at the Western Park on Wednesday the 13th of May from 2 to 4pm. In lieu of flowers, we ask that you donate to a scholarship fund in his name at Mountain America Credit Union. We thank all who gave such kind words and support through this trying time. A beautiful life for a beautiful man.. Arrangements are under the direction of Blackburn Vernal Mortuary. www.blackburnvernalmortuary.com