The unique life of Hubertus (Hugh) Herman Trabandt began on 12\27\1934 when he was born the 3rd child of Lilly (Ihnen) and August Wilhelm Trabandt in Elbing, East Prussia. His early childhood was spent on the family farm in what is now Poland where he was bilingual in Polish and German.
In January of 1945, as the Russian front proceeded westward as his father was actively fighting the war on the Eastern front, his mother fled as an Eastern European Displaced Refugee with Hugh (10 yrs and one month), his younger sister Sigrid (8) and two very young nephews (4 & 2), on a train which was carrying wounded soldiers back to Germany. His mother was a Red Cross nurse, which was how she was able to get on the train and smuggle on the children. At the German border, Hugh was taken from his mother to be part of the war effort. He was assigned to a large horse-drawn gun that no longer had ammunition along with other little boys and old men. It was a bitter cold winter and they had no protective clothing, food or supplies. Hugh credited an old sergeant with keeping some of the boys alive.
When the war was over, Hugh found his way to Hamburg and his mother. He escaped from hopelessness, crowded housing and starvation conditions by reading about cowboys in America. At the age of 14, he hired onto a herring boat that stopped in Nova Scotia. Hugh jumped ship thinking he could get to Arizona where he knew there were cowboys. This only lasted a few days and he had to return to Germany. He was blackballed from the fishing industry which did not hurt his feelings at all as he hated being a fisherman. In 1950, as a result of his relentless persistence and determination, he reached the United States through a farm youth exchange program which sent him to Kansas to the Shoemaker farm. The Shoemakers later sponsored him to work in the United States after his mandatory return to Germany.
At the age of 16, he left this farm and made his way to Arizona to be a cowboy. He was taken in by the Ensign family, which he considered his adoptive family for the rest of his life. He had many adventures to tell about this chapter of his life.
In his late teens, he joined the U.S. Army where he lost the hearing in his left ear very early in his tour training with artillery. He was sent to Korea toward the end of the conflict. After Korea, through dogged persistence, he was sent to Berlin to be with the last horse-mounted platoon, the 287th Mounted MP Constabulary, where he successfully represented the U.S. military on the show jumping team in international competitions. He earned the German Silver Riding Medal, the only American serviceman to do so. Already in Hugh’s time, horses in the military were a thing of the past and were used mainly for MP duty, border patrol and in ceremonies and parades. While in Berlin he earned his G.E.D. having had haphazard and piecemeal formal schooling due to the war.
Returning to the U.S. after his tour of duty with G.I. benefits, he studied at Arizona State University majoring in animal husbandry. He joined the collegiate rodeo tour enjoying success as a saddle bronc rider and in the wild horse race.
Hugh’s good friend Murphy from the horse platoon in Berlin encouraged Hugh to come to Colorado where Murphy worked at the Broadmoor Stables. After working in Denver training horses for the Phipps family who owned Mile High Stadium, Hugh came to Colorado Springs. This became home for our wandering German cowboy. He enrolled at Colorado College, taking a job at the Broadmoor Hotel managing the riding stables, training jumping horses and driving a stagecoach. Hugh was never happy unless he had several irons in the fire.
While working at the Broadmoor, he met and married Cynthia Lawson. They bought a ranch near Turkey Creek south of Colorado Springs and another one outside of Hartsel. During this time they had daughters Laurie in 1960 and Tamara in 1965.
In 1965, Hugh accomplished one of his proudest moments. While managing the stables at Fort Carson, he formed the Mounted Color Guard. This horse mounted military pageantry is still alive and flourishing. It has also been recreated by several other Army bases within the United States.
This was not enough for Hugh, though. He also trained horses in his free time working for a local rancher, Tony Cucharrus. This relationship lasted over 30 years and resulted in many broken bones over those years.
HIs marriage to Cynthia ended under amicable circumstances and due to the loss of their Colorado Springs ranch to Fort Carson, he travelled to Australia to explore new frontiers. Eventually Colorado called him back, however, and the cowboy came home.
Not long after his return from Australia, Hugh met Mary Ann Johnson in 1971, a turning point which resulted in their marriage in 1973 and a partnership that lasted until his death. Hugh and Mary Ann traveled to many far corners of the world, built a house, raised 2 wonderful children, Eric (1979) and Eve (1982) and built up businesses while maintaining their main occupations of fire chief and teacher.
During this time, Hugh achieved another of his proudest accomplishments turning the volunteer only Broadmoor Fire and Rescue Department into a paid paramedic unit. He became its chief for the next 30 years. As a firefighter with extra time on his hands, he began to cultivate his artistic talents. For a number of years he did western and wildlife bronze sculpture. His talent was widely recognized and his pieces were sold throughout the country. At this time he also began writing the story of his life which is both a book and a documentary video.
Hugh always worked hard to make sure family came first. It was his highest priority, and those who knew him knew he never had any reservations about bragging on them. When he became a grandpa, with Jennifer in 1990, Kaylee in 1994, Tarrah in 1995 and Torri in 1997, he found great joy in the next generation of cowgirls with bragging rights. As with anything he did, he did it with all his heart. He taught his grand girls how to ride, to run a business, to accept responsibility, to respect others, and to appreciate hard work. He was very appreciative while being semi-retired, to be able to spend quality time with each granddaughter. His ultimate
moments of happiness were in celebrating the uniqueness and strength of each one. He loved nothing more than for his family to be together, laughing and enjoying each other’s company
In 1993, he approached the Broadmoor Hotel with the concept of a riding stables where Ski Broadmoor once was. This business gave all three generations of the family a place to learn work ethics while providing horseback rides to the public with five star standards. In 1997, the Stables at the Broadmoor was moved to Old Stage Ranch on Old Stage Road west of the city of Colorado Springs.
Never happy unless he accomplished more by 8:00 a.m. than most people do in a day, he and the family opened a winter stables at White Tanks Regional Park in Arizona in 1998. He found his ideal life with Cather Springs Ranch, Old Stage Ranch, the stables and collecting elk and bison, while putting together a family business in which everyone had a role.
Hugh was lucky enough to have a second wave as grandfather, inspiring his youthful personality when blessed with three more granddaughters: Amelia in 2009, Ivy in 2015 and Lily in 2018. Finally, in June of 2020, he became a great grandfather to Jack, a boy! He was able to hold and sing to his first ever great grandchild.
Our renaissance husband, father and grandfather spent his last day planning to go horseback riding with his son Eric. This plan was interrupted by a massive stroke on August 28, 2020, which resulted in his death on September 2.
Hugh was preceded in death by his parents, his sisters Eva and Sigrid in South Africa and his brother Jochen in Germany. He is survived by his wife Mary Ann, 3 daughters: Laurie Zickefoose (John), Tami Dickinson (Terry), Eve Childers (Mark), and one son Eric, 7 granddaughters, and a great grandson.

Follow this link to Hugh’s Autobiography: Hugh Trabandt-Of Horses and a Man :https://www.dropbox.com/s/zaaetf4nf9yr8cg/Horses and a Man May 2017.pdf?dl=0

Follow this link to the YouTube video documenting Hugh’s life: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKqbcNhS4qA&feature=share
Please continue reading for an invitation to the virtual event on 9/16/20.

Dear Friends and Family,
In honor of the life of Hugh Trabandt, please join us to commemorate at a virtual event since we are not able to come together in person due to the ongoing pandemic. We will host an event online that you all can join regardless of your location and remain safely at home. We will broadcast live on Youtube.

Here are options to participate:

1) If you wish to share a story or memory of Hugh live during the event, please RSVP to alyssa@thinaircreations.com. You will join the event with this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86127887930

2) If you would like to just view the event, or you cannot attend, but would like to view the event later, use this link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRvocr4jR5916LMtL2WuQMw?

3) If you cannot attend, or do not wish to speak during the live broadcast, but would like to share a story or memory, please record it using the video camera on your cell phone and text it to 719-459-6013. Please send your video no later than September 15 by 8:00 p.m. Your recording will be shown during the live event.
We hope you’re able to celebrate along with us.


Yours in love and friendship,
Mary Ann Trabandt and family