Everyone rich, poor or in between should have a Bob Caton’s Charley and Alice in their lives.
Caton grew up on Denver’s west side in the 1950s and early 1960s as Charley and Alice Caton’s son. With parental support from his dad, Caton developed a keen interest in basketball. He became an all-city player at Denver West under coach Mike Jurich, went on to be a starter at Colorado State under coach Jim Williams and then went into the coaching ranks, where he has become a prolific winner at Denver-area high schools.
So far, his story sounds pretty routine.
But when he was at CSU in 1969-70, Caton’s phone rang and the caller explained that Charley and Alice were his grandparents and she was his biological mother.
“Something like that throws you for a loop at first,” Caton said. “Then I realized that I was so fortunate to have been in a household with parents who cared for me. I sat down with Charley and Alice and told them. I wanted them to know I knew and I was very happy they raised me.”
Charley Caton was both father and grandfather in providing support and devotion. He was physically handicapped resulting from polio and had struggled as everyone did through the Great Depression and World War II. He kept the family going as best he could.
“We didn’t have a car or even a telephone when I was growing up,” Bob Caton said. “We dressed out of Goodwill at times, but I never did without. I always had something to eat, and I always was clean.”
Caton lived in the Baker district and started his basketball apprenticeship on the Fairmont Elementary School playgrounds. Charley helped further his basketball experience by taking him to watch Denver Prep League games at the old Auditorium Arena.
“We’d catch the No. 50 bus and go downtown to the games,” Caton said. “I idolized the high school players. I especially remembered Richard Tate of East, Dick Garcia of West and the Babbs brothers (Chris and Dave of East).”
Charley Caton never missed any of his son’s high school games. When the venue changed to CSU, he took the No. 50 bus to the downtown terminal and road a bus to Fort Collins.
“He lived and died to go to my games,” Bob Caton said of Charley’s support. “When I was coaching, he always was there while he could.”
Caton’s coaching path led him to Manual, Denver West and George Washington in the Denver Prep League. He left the Denver Public Schools to coach at Aurora Central and is now at Highlands Ranch. His teams have won more than 400 games and made the state tournament at least once in each one of his stops.
Caton learned gratitude from his parents. He wonders if he would be where he is today if it weren’t for Bob Wilson, the former coach at Denver South and district athletic director in Denver who recommended him to CSU. Ad Lopez, an administrator in Aurora, talked him into returning to coaching after his experience at George Washington at the end turned sour. There was Guy Gibbs, who coached him in the all-state games after his senior season at West, and Jim Ward, the principal at Manual, who gave him his first coaching job.
And there was Boyd Grant, the assistant coach at CSU at the time, who recruited him and gave him a chance to play. Caton rewarded the confidence by being recognized as the most inspirational on the team in 1971.
“I’ve always had challenges, and that’s one of the reasons I coach,” Caton said. “I try to teach my players to be the best they can be, and I do what I can to help them with their lives.”
And there’s Charley.
“I think of Charley quite a bit,” Caton said. “I catch myself sometimes at our games looking over to see if he’s sitting in the stands.”
Caton bio
Born: May 12, 1949, in Denver
High school: Denver West
College: Colorado State
Family: Wife Linda; daughters Ali, Jamie, Kristi; son Rob
Hobbies: None, but wants to coach as long as he’s wanted.
Outlook: Being “Charley” to his grandchildren.
