Thurlow “Lee” LeRoy Mason, who died recently in Boulder, was born on December 18, 1942 in Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota, the eighth child of Thuel LeRoy Mason and Agnes Mathilde Nelson. He had seven siblings: Wilma “Lorraine”, Burneita “Beets” Juella, Audrey Ione, Arla Theola, Joan “Marlys”, Shirley Ann, and Janet Ardelle.
Lee grew up in Appleton, Minnesota and attended Appleton Schools, graduating in 1961. After graduation, he enlisted in the Air Force and was stationed at Fort Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas.
After military service, Lee went back to school and completed a degree in nursing, later working as an LPN. On December 18, 1971, he married Donna Ione Stenstrom, the daughter of Laverne and Anna (Draper) Stenstrom, in Hennepin County, Minnesota. Lee became the loving father to two stepsons, Terry and Timothy. The family moved to Helena by 1980, and by 1985 had relocated to Boulder.
