Written for, and with, everyone who called Dominick Breton a friend
On the morning of June 18, 2026, the news moved through Wheat Ridge faster than Clear Creek in a spring melt.
Dominick Breton was gone — after a short illness, before the Carnation Festival, before his time.
How do you fit a man like that into 450 words? Maybe you don’t. Maybe all you can do is name the two things that carried him through this life: friendship and a deep, stubborn love for Wheat Ridge.
If you never got a Dom-told list of things to do to make this town better, never got pulled into a chili cook-off or a garden tour or a city council race you had no plan to run, there aren’t enough words in the English language to tell you what you missed.
If community could take human form, it would have looked a lot like Dominick Breton.
He worked at the Safeway at 44th and Lowell for twenty years. The people who stood across that counter still talk about his smile. Think about that: a man so kind at a checkout lane that strangers carried his face with them for the rest of their lives.
He was President of the Wheat Ridge Chamber of Commerce, but the title never explained him. What explained him was morning coffee with the new shop owner afraid she wouldn’t make rent. The phone call you didn’t expect. The text thread that somehow filled your whole social calendar. The big idea everyone knew would make more work for everybody — and somehow you signed up anyway, because Dom believed. And belief, it turns out, is contagious.
When his health failed, this town opened its wallet: more than $25,000 in three days. To help him heal. To see him walking down 38th Avenue come August, the way he always did. That was the plan. He was going to get better. He was always going to be here.
His sister called him her first friend. A groom called him his best man. A whole community called him theirs. The tributes came from Kiwanis clubs around the world, neighboring Chambers, the Grange, the Coalition for Education, small business owners, and the Key Club kids he championed at Everitt.
A town doesn’t really lose a man like that. Every volunteer he recruited, every business he encouraged, every kindergarten shirt he handed out — that stays. That is Wheat Ridge now. That is his legacy.
Come August, he’ll be walking down 38th in the parade and milling around the Carnation Festival. And every one of us will feel him there.
Letters from readers
Thank You, Dominick.
There are people who make a difference in a community through titles, positions, or accomplishments. Then there are people who make a difference simply by showing up, caring deeply, and connecting people to one another. For Wheat Ridge, that person was Dominick.
In the spring of 2020, Stylus & Crate was still under construction. The world was in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, uncertainty was everywhere, and like many small business owners, we were questioning whether opening a new coffee shop was the right decision. We had invested our hearts, our time, and our resources into a dream, but no one knew what the future would hold.
Then one day, a stranger walked through our doors.
He introduced himself as Dominick, welcomed us to Wheat Ridge, and immediately began telling us about the community he loved. With his trademark optimism and contagious enthusiasm, he assured us that Wheat Ridge would support us. More importantly, he promised he would help in any way he could.
At the time, we appreciated the encouragement. What we didn’t yet know was that Dominick was completely serious.
Over the weeks and months that followed, he became one of our greatest champions. He introduced us to neighbors, community leaders, organizations, and residents. He connected people, shared stories, spread the word, and helped us become part of the fabric of Wheat Ridge. His efforts played a significant role in helping our small business not only survive one of the most challenging periods in modern history but ultimately thrive.
But Dominick’s impact extended far beyond our coffee shop.
He possessed a rare gift for bringing people together. He understood that strong communities are built through relationships, and he dedicated himself to creating those connections. Wherever he went, he left people feeling welcome, valued, and included.
At Stylus & Crate, he became much more than a customer. He became family. He checked in on us, encouraged our team, shared ideas, and always looked for ways to help us improve. Our community bulletin board—what many now know as our community wall—became one of his passions. He maintained it as if it were his own, ensuring that it remained a place where neighbors could discover events, causes, and opportunities to connect.
I often joked that Dominick was our mascot or perhaps our longest-tenured employee. The truth is that he taught me what community really looks like. He showed me that connection is not something that happens by accident; it is something that is intentionally created through kindness, generosity, and genuine care for others.
It would be impossible to tell the story of Stylus & Crate without telling the story of Dominick.
Most importantly, though, I will remember him as one of my most trusted friends. I will miss the phone calls, the text messages, the surprise visits, and the countless conversations that always seemed to leave me feeling better than before.
Thank you, Dominick, for believing in us from the very beginning. Thank you for your friendship. Thank you for helping us become part of the community you loved so much.
Wheat Ridge is better because you were here, and all of us who knew you are better because we knew you. ~ The Staff of Stylus & Crate
“Dominick was a deep believer in people, and relationships, and in the healthy combination of both to produce community. The conviction that our lives grow in proportion to the relationships we build sits at the very heart of Prosperity Partners. We will miss Dominick, but we’ll take a page from his playbook and surround ourselves with helpers, builders, dreamers, and doers, because in doing so, he became one of the greatest champions our community has ever known, and in doing so, we honor his legacy.” ~ Prosperity Partners Group
Wheat Ridge has lost a beloved friend, cheerleader, community connector. Dominick Breton seemed to be everywhere people gathered be it to eat, drink, network, celebrate. He was a champion of the Wheat Ridge Chamber and would find businesses that wanted to celebrate being in business in Wheat Ridge. I can’t count how many ribbon cuttings we attended together, he as part of the Chamber and the ones set up through Wheat Ridge Business Association. He would show up early, greet the attendees and grab the ribbon and pose with the Mayor and attending Councilpeople. Time and again we would trek though all kinds of wind, sunny weather, showers, whatever the weather to help welcome business to our City. As I drove down 38th today location after location I could see him smiling, remembering how he would stand proudly and smile for the camera…Mr. Biscuits, Yamp Cycles, Raising Canes, Marco’s Pizza, 7Brew, Edison Apartments, Figs and Bricks, First Watch, Chick Fil-A, Hobby Lobby, Tiny Liquors, Evolition, Huckleberry Roasters, Stylus & Crate, Mestizo Brew Cantina, Twisted Smoothie, Flair-Do, Annie’s Pies, Wheat Ridge Meats, Meat Shoppe on 38th and on and on. Such good memories. We will miss you Dom but we won’t forget you or your pet phrase, “Can’t we just all get along?” ~ Cheryl Brungardt
The Wheat Ridge Vectra Bank team and I are heartbrokeBy the passing of our Chamber President, and my friend, Dominick Breton. I had the privilege of knowing and working with Dominick for several years, and his leadership, generosity, and unwavering commitment to Wheat Ridge made a lasting impact on all of us. We extend our deepest sympathy to his family and to everyone who is feeling this loss. ~ Rachael Letterly, VP Branch Manager, Vectra Bank Wheat Ridge
Dominick was the heart of every organization he belonged to. He brought a smile and the spirit of service to his community. Dom’s Kiwanis family will forever be grateful for his friendship and commitment to Serving the Children of the World. ~ Andrea Weule
Dominick was the most positive and energetic force on our Kiwanis board. A great friend and has left behind a true legacy. ~ Gov. Carol Chiarito
He was truly a pleasure to know and embodied the spirit of Kiwanis. His impact on Kiwanis and the countless people whose lives he touched will be felt for generations to come, he will be deeply missed. ~ Madeline LeGrange
Dom had a way of volunteering people to do things, while making them think it was their idea and it was always a good idea. ~ Rose (EMS)
Dom, simply, walked his talk, creating and encouraging ribbons of community in every organization and circle of folks he joined. Dom certainly embellished the reach and depth of my life — Right-on Brother — Blessings Galore! ~ David Colson
I only got to be Dom’s friend for a year and change. But it was a friendship that changed my life. The thing about Dom, the reason why he was an experience more than a person is that he was a mirror that only showed the best parts of yourself reflected, because he only saw people’s full potential. The way you reacted to him, the way he commanded your attention and moved you into action, the way that he made you feel, and act, and commit, that is the best version of yourself. Remember that. ~ Julian Getz
Dear Dom. Thank you for being my friend for the past 17 years, when I first joined the Wheat Ridge Kiwanis Club. You have been an inspiration for me with your enthusiasm and willingness to volunteer within our community. I will deeply miss seeing you every week at our club meetings. Blessings to you and your family. ~ Joan Chavez-Lee
From Dom’s Instagram page: “Life Is Short. Do Stuff That Matters.” Dom probably did more “stuff that matters” in his 42 years of life than most people do in 80 years of life. ~ Tom Seeton
My first Kiwanis group folded several years ago but who was there to offer me a new home.….Dom.…what a guy he was. ~ Scott Staley
Dom made a difference in every life he touched. He brought out the best in everyone he knew and he knew everyone. I miss you my dear friend and your daily text message, “Hello friend, what are you doing? tag.” ~ Kirstin Litz
Dom Breton was one of the finest people I’ve ever known. Small in stature but enormous in heart, he would do anything for anyone without hesitation. As a Kiwanian, he was simply the best—always giving, always caring, always making a difference. He was my little buddy, a true friend, and someone whose kindness touched countless lives. I will miss him terribly, but I will always be grateful for the time we shared and the example he set for all of us. ~ International Trustee Tim Sheppard
Dominic was an amazing person with more energy than a toddler! He slays came with a positive attitude and will to tackle any challenge. But more than that, he was a friend who always had your back. I’ll miss him dearly! ~ Past District Gov. Ann Stelling
Dom gave his life to others… our gift back to him is to share his stories. “Carve your name on hearts, not a tombstone. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you.” -author, Unknown. Rest Easy. ~ Heili Yeley
Dom had a rare gift: no matter what you asked of him, he met the request with a genuine, delighted smile. He lived his life putting others first—completely without hesitation, and always without complaint. He will be deeply missed. ~ Michelle Hoffner
Kiwanians are passionate about helping their community, particularly kids. Dominick was a prime example of that passion! As a Kiwanian for more than 20 years, he was always on the outlook to develop more opportunities to serve, and he was personally involved in every community activity available. His positive spirit overcame a lifetime of serious medical issues, and we are thankful that his spirit will live on in our memories. ~ Steve Otto
Mister Wheat Ridge arrived at the Chamber of Commerce on a Thursday morning in March and he parked his car entirely too full of too much stuff like bingo boards and donated books and Future Farmer t-shirts and Carnation Festival stickers and Longmont Dairy Milk Caps and then he punched the code to the back door and he went inside and turned on all the lights and adjusted the thermostat and he walked across the room and opened the curtains and unlocked the front door.
At any given time there were three things on Mister Wheat Ridge’s mind: 1. Our community. 2. The world of business relationships waiting to be forged out there. 3. his Kiwanis.
Mister Wheat Ridge turned around and he saw that someone was jiggling the door handle to the back door from the outside. He ignored it and instead he walked toward the kitchenette and he opened the cabinet below the sink and took out the percolator and filled it up with water to its 25th line. He looked on the shelf above the sink where he keeps Chamber mugs upside down and wine walk flute glasses right side up. He stood on his tippy toes and leaned right and looked next to the Keurig machine buckets and he moved a box with tea bags and white and brown sugar and stevia packets out of the way and he looked again and he felt the back of the shelf with his fingers and he found wood stirrers and travel lids and a bag of coffee beans but he couldn’t find any paper filters there.
‘Good Morning’ -said the second man to arrive and he took off his hat and closed the door behind him and locked it out of habit. He walked slowly taking in the room with each calculated pace. He took his jacket off and hung it on the back of a chair and put his hat on the beige rectangular table in front of that chair. His hat is a black canvas Army cap. He served our nation as an infantry officer with the 82nd airborne and as an advisor during the Vietnam war more than fifty years ago. Next to his hat on the table he sat down a book with whales and late 19th century whaler ships skirmishing it at sea on the cover. And next to the book and the hat he put a small black leather pouch with his blood glucose monitor and a lancet pen and a tube of test strips in it. He stood and breathed deep and smiled when he noticed that the art on the walls had been changed again. ‘Good Morning John’-said Mister Wheat Ridge but John wasn’t wearing his hearing aids and he got startled when the younger man snuck behind him busy about his business with coffee filters. The president arrived third and he knew the code to the back door. He punched it and opened the door and left it open. He greeted John but John didn’t hear him and then he greeted Mister Wheat Ridge and found the coffee filters for him in the cabinet where they keep the black box with the bell.
Mister Wheat Ridge and the fourth man to arrive went over loose notes about Key Club Meetings and AWRSAY Scholarships with the club’s treasurer who arrived fifth. Anika from Mister Biscuits delivered seven bacon and eight sausage Mr. Biscuits in a brown paper bag and a cinnamon treat for the President. Mr. Biscuits (if you don’t know) is where it’s at. At some point during all that, Mister Wheat Ridge noticed John shuffle toward the closet where the furnace is and open the door and retrieve a length of PVC pipe that was there. He closed the door and moseyed across the room and around the tables to the left of the front door and he steadied himself there with the help of the PVC pipe and an office chair for a moment. Mister Wheat Ridge watched him look through the window at a small brown squirrel crossing 38th street in a frenzy to go frolic on The Green and then at a great big burgundy Cadillac Escalade back into a parking spot. John smiled and took a deep breath and he held it in and then bent his knees slowly and outwardly and intentionally like a sensei and crouched in there he stretched a hand towards the storage space under the window display that Mister Wheat Ridge kept full of business cards and information brochures and a coterie of ingenious trophies cobbled out of cogs amalgamated to gears and coils and bike chains and other various vehicle entrails and he found a leather bag with a janky zipper that he had to negotiate with a bit and he opened it and took a blue banner out.
The president had taken the brass bell out of its black box and he marched to his president’s table at the front of the room carrying it nested in the crook of his elbow and the palm of his hand like it was a newborn child. In his other hand he held the brown wooden mallet that is chained to the bell and when he set both things on the corner of the table the bell rang a muted whine. Mister Wheat ridge watched John unroll the banner and match the center of the braided yellow cord strung across the top dowel to a notch on the PVC pipe and then use the PVC pipe to hoist the banner that says “Wheat Ridge Kiwanis Club” above his head and hang it to a nail on the wall. ‘Wow, look at John!’ -said Mister Wheat Ridge. ‘He got it on the first try!’.
Mister Wheat Ridge unwrapped a bacon mister biscuit and took a bite and chewing got lost in the gestures and mannerisms of two Kiwanis speaking with their hands and then the President hit the bell with the mallet and everyone pledged allegiance to the flag and sung God Bless America in as many as eight simultaneous key signatures and then Gary asked the lord for rain and for blessings for the least fortunate and a different John that is also a vet told the room what happened that day in history. Mister Wheat Ridge introduced the guest speaker and paid attention and clapped effusively as she told the club of her incredible accomplishments in gymnastics and her deep love for our community.
Toward the end of the meeting the group took turns sharing what they were happy about and that’s when Mister Wheat Ridge saw one of the older Kiwanis use a shaky plastic fork to patiently stab and scoop and eventually roll a stubborn grape onto their breakfast plate. ‘They’re getting old on me,’ he remarked in a whisper only I could hear. ‘Gotta make the most of whatever time we have left with them, my friend,’ he said, ‘cherish it, because soon they’ll be gone.’ As fate would have it Mister Wheat Ridge left us first. He passed the morning of June 18th and left a Mister Wheat Ridge sized hole in my heart because he was my friend. The kind of friend that feels like a brother. He went well out of his way to invite me to Kiwanis and business Ribbon Cuttings and Leads Groups Meetings and introduce me to everyone (he knew EVERYONE) and help position my company when I first moved to Wheat Ridge. I think it’s because he genuinely was the biggest fan of every business in the Chamber of Commerce and he genuinely was the biggest fan of Wheat Ridge. And of the Kiwanis! You should come and check out a meeting. He would have wanted you to. His superpowers were connecting people to one another and to the city, a relentless ability to show up, an astonishing work ethic, and an unwavering love for his community. Mister Wheat Ridge’s name was Dominick Breton, and I will miss him very, very much.
~ sheridan youngfield
