Allen, Arthur William

Arthur William Allen died from medical complications on Saturday, Jan. 8, 2011. Memorial services: 11 a.m. Wednesday at Shueyville United Methodist Church, Shueyville. A gathering will be held on Tuesday at Cedar Memorial Westside Chapel in Cedar Rapids from 4 to 7 p.m. The Rev. Tom Carver will officiate.

Arthur was born in The Pas, Manitoba, Canada, on July 14, 1934, and was the son of the late William and Madeline (Spear) Allen.

Surviving are his son, Kurt (Kim) Allen of Colorado Springs, Colo.; daughters, Dawn (Ted) Staver of Easton, Kan., and Michelle (Craig) Beisker of Cedar Rapids; grandchildren, Holly and Reece Allen, Alyssa and Erik Beisker; sisters, Shirley Mann of Thompson, Manitoba, Canada and Connie Keast of LaBroquerie, Manitoba, Canada; brothers, Ron (Kathy) Allen of Cedar Rapids and Greg Allen of Clearwater Beach, Fla.

He was preceded in death by his parents and sister, Maureen Allen.

At the age of 22, Art moved from northern Canada to Cedar Rapids to join Highway Equipment, owned by Roy Gaddis, to care for their animals and to race sled dogs to promote the company. His true passion was working with his Siberian Alaskan sled dogs and he traveled extensively during the winter months to train and race them in New England, northern U.S. and throughout Canada. He was a four-time world sled do champion of his hometown race at The Pas.

For almost 50 years, Art owned and operated a gas service station with his father, Bill, and then brother, Ron, located on Williams Boulevard SW, Cedar Rapids. They proudly displayed their partnership with Shell Oil Co. for 20 years, Phillips for another 20 years and then Sinclair for 10 years. Many people benefited by their full service gas which is now a thing of the past, mechanical services and good humor upon being greeted in the front office.

On Jan. 25, 1958, Art married Judith Ann Smith and later divorced after 32 years of marriage. Together they raised three children who were involved with the menagerie of animals, which mostly included dogs and horses, but on occasion involved everything from birds to monkeys.

Anyone who knew Art couldn't help but hear stories about Canada, his sled dogs and the many sled dog races he won. He proudly remained a Canadian citizen until his death.

 A memorial fund has been established.