Obituary of Harold Kovash

Hal Kovash, 67, of Lakewood, Colorado, died by suicide in the early hours of Christmas morning, December 25, 2022.

Hal was born on July 16, 1955 to Jerry and Aggie Kovash in Dickinson, North Dakota. After Hal graduated from Thornton high school in 1973 he went straight to work. His first job as a truck driver for Colorado Denver Freight Delivery lasted for three years. He joined the Sheet Metal Workers’ Local #9 in 1976 where he completed a four-year apprenticeship, and eventually became a journeyman, sheet metal HVAC mechanic, and then later a supervisor. He did this for 10 years until 1986.

In 1987 Hal met Debbie Black at Cheers in Arvada, Colorado. Hal and Debbie went on to have one child, Cody. Hal was also the stepfather to Matt Kroupa. He also helped raise Andrew Shannon and Shawn Wilson in his early years before meeting and eventually marrying Debbie June 2, 1989.

After meeting, Debbie, Hal went to work for her family company, Aspen Mortuary in 1987 where he helped build the family company from the ground up. He was a funeral director for 27 years and later was named vice president of the company. His charismatic ways and his family oriented upbringing allowed him to help thousands of families through what is a very difficult time when someone passes away. He hung it up in 2014 needing a change in his work life.

In June 2014, Hal attended and graduated from CDL College where he obtain his Class A CDL drivers license. He worked three more years as a Class A CDL truck driver for Specialized Rail Services before he eventually retired in 2017.

You could always find Hal traveling with Debbie stopping in at the local Elks Lodge or American Legion wherever they were. Hal never missed Cody and Matt’s sporting events and even got into coaching these events. He was always rebuilding his Harley Davidson as he did so many times in his life. Whether he was hanging out with friends at Guido’s or Riley’s you could always count on having a good meaningful conversation with him and you could be sure to have a good laugh. He loved his family very much and for his 60th birthday he called for a family reunion in beautiful Salida, Colorado. Eventually he received, what he said to be the greatest gift in his life, when he became Papa to Madison Taylor, Emery Amber, and Zachary Andrew a.k.a. his best friend. Whether it was building them a treehouse, cooking them food, babysitting them during Broncos games, or having water balloon fights, and so much more. Papa Hal was at his very best when he was around his grandkids. .

Hal was predeceased in death by his parents, Jerry and Aggie Kovash. He is survived by his loving wife Debbie, his son Cody and his son Matt and Beth (Madison, Emery, & Zakary), brother Jon and Nancy (Josie), sister Lucy and Fred (Erich & Kaitlin), sister Julie (Aaron), and sister Carolyn and Forrest (Allie & Rachel).

Graveside services at Arvada Cemetery will he held later this spring on a date and time TBD. This will be for the family.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline;  Call 1-800-273-8255,  Available 24 hours every day

SAHMSA’s National Helpline Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services;  Call 1-800-662-HELP (4357)