If you have ever wondered what it was like growing up in a Norman Rockwell type community, ask Phyllis Buck. Phyllis grew up on a large farm, amid a very big family, roamed the nearby woods, rode horses and attended a one-room school.

Phyllis’ grandparents were from Scotland and England and were definitely hardy souls who worked hard, did not complain and solved problems as they came up.  After immigrating, the family settled in Minnesota near Windom, a town of 3,000 not too far from South Dakota and Iowa. 

Phyllis’ birth was attended by a country doctor who had delivered her mother’s first born. Phyllis’ mother was widowed at age 40, continued to farm 160 acres alone, raise her children, kept a large garden and lived into her nineties. Phyllis’ father loved the land and continually expanded their property by purchasing nearby farms. The family ended up with over 800 acres which they cultivated or leased out. Her mother was an accomplished seamstress whose services were in demand. Phyllis had so many siblings that the children lived in two rather different families due to the changes over time and the circumstances of her parents. The younger children all went to college but most of the children stayed in Minnesota, except Phyllis. 

The family were members of the nearby Baptist church and attended multiple times every week. Holidays were big family gatherings with Scandinavian traditions of Christmas trees with flickering (real) candles, lots of food brought by all the guests, gatherings for all family celebrations and lots of cousins to add to the fun.  At harvest time, her mother and grandmother would cook for days to feed dozens of threshers who arrived with huge harvesting machines and then went on to the next farm job.

Growing up, Phyllis remembers a ‘peaceful’ childhood in the country, riding bikes and horses, getting pulled by horses hitched to small carts, inventing all sorts of games and activities with siblings, and spending time with her maternal grandmother. While her grandmother had a no-nonsense bearing, she was loving and enjoyed showing Phyllis lots of domestic tasks. With only about 12 -15 other students, Phyllis attended a one-room school from 1^st to 5^th grades.  Her remaining grades were spent in Windom’s high school. Phyllis remembers being scared, overwhelmed, quiet and shy among all the students in the new, larger school.   

During high school, Phyllis was fascinated by her biology class, especially when they studied the human body. Her career choice, nursing, was strongly influenced by her biology class and her older sister who had become a nurse. Phyllis was accepted into Methodist-Kahler School of Nursing which was, at that time, affiliated with Rochester’s Mayo Clinic. The nursing students worked with patients at the Mayo Clinic. After getting a nursing degree, she and four other friends moved to Denver to work at Presbyterian Hospital. While there, she met Fredrick Buck, who was visiting his father, who was a patient. Fred, a Colorado native, worked as a forester up in Routt National Forest near Ward, Colorado. He later moved back to Denver, where he met Phyllis. They dated and were married. They lived, mostly, in Denver and were married for 58 years. 

Knowing the lumber business, Fred became a lumber wholesaler who purchased lumber from across the United States and sold it to various lumber companies. Phyllis worked as a nurse until their children arrived and she was able to take several years off. Bachelor of Science degree and a Master of Public Health from the University of Colorado. After working for many years in public health, Phyllis graduated from a massage school in Denver and worked in doctor’s office as an RN Massage Therapist doing deep muscle massage. 

Phyllis and Fred’s family expanded with the addition of two daughters, Liesl and Gretchen. Liesl, a graphic designer, worked in the marketing department for National Jewish Hospital and has two children. Gretchen worked as a prosecuting attorney. She lives in Grand Junction, is a judge and has two children. Phyllis and Fred loved to travel and joined Ports-O-Call, a travel club with flights and trips all over the world. After every trip, participants receive a small bar which gets added in a series to hang from their name badge. Phyllis and Fred had name badges with a series of trip destinations that must measure 13 -14 inches long! 

Phyllis and her family were very active, hiking, downhill skiing and swimming, all of which she did for over four decades. She and Fred even moved to Vail for a year to enjoy mountain living. When home, she enjoyed reading, doing puzzles, gardening, entertaining, cooking and supporting all the activities her daughters were doing. When Phyllis was 62, she started quilting. While she knew how to sew, she taught herself how to quilt and successfully tackled some complicated projects.

In January of 2000, she and Fred moved into the Lowry neighborhood in order to downsize and be closer to Liesl and her family. Phyllis joined Montview when Gil Horn was one of the three pastors and was impressed by the music and how involved Montview was in the community. Phyllis regularly attended Sunday services, the speaker series, the Women’s Book Club, Prayer Shawl Ministry and just recently has joined the Montview Quilters. In 2019, Fred passed away after a short illness and Phyllis has been alone for the past seven years. 

Phyllis credits her longevity to good genetics, always eating a sensible diet, daily exercise, walking regularly, being curious to learn new things, having a strong social network and being close to her family. She is caring, likes all different people, is tolerant, and tries to follow her mother’s model of never criticizing. She remembers her mother handling stress by going out to work in her garden or sewing and often saying, “Don’t get upset about things you can’t change.” This advice seems to have worked well for Phyllis as she has weathered all kinds of change and difficulties and continues to be optimistic and outgoing.

– Submitted by Brooke Durland and Phyllis Buck

Boyd Hillwertz is a Montview member who may have discovered the Fountain of Youth. He will soon be turning 90, but he is not acting like it. He is playing pickleball several times a week, downhill skiing (when there is snow) and going on 20-mile bike rides routinely.

Boyd was born in Oak Park, Illinois and in his early years, grew up bilingual due to spending time with his Swedish grandparents. His parents, Boyd and his sister, moved to Portland, Oregon when he was five years old. Boyd’s father was a renowned custom tailor whose suits earned awards at tailoring conventions. His mother taught piano and organ lessons. Boyd’s childhood was spent riding bikes, playing softball and football, playing the violin and piano and exploring with friends. The family’s holiday celebrations continued Swedish traditions, baking ginger cookies – Pepparkakor and buttery, Swedish Tea cookies, having Glogg (mulled wine) to drink, going to church services at their Presbyterian Church and having friends over. His dad would play the accordion and his mom the piano.

Boyd became so accomplished as a musician that at age 14 he was invited to play 2^nd violin with the Portland Symphony Orchestra. Music has always been an important part of his life. He enjoyed athletics since his youth; he played softball with his church league and went on to play with the community league. He had a batting average of 470. At Lewis and Clark College, he played football until injuries sidelined him. He raced on the college ski team, taught skiing and worked for years on the Ski Patrol at Mt. Hood.

College was interrupted when Boyd went into the Air Force. He was stationed at Travis Air Force Base in northern California and worked for four years in the dental clinic at the base. He became quite proficient doing basic dental procedures before leaving the service. He returned to the University of Oregon to finish his degree. Having become acquainted with the medical field, he applied to Upjohn Pharmaceuticals and was hired as a representative to work in the Denver area.  Boyd, always interested in learning more about subjects, pursued additional training and understanding of cardiac problems in order to work more effectively with the cardiac specialists at St. Anthony’s Hospital.

Boyd loved living in Denver, married, had two children and decided to build the first passive solar house in Evergreen, Colorado in the 1970s, not far from North Turkey Creek. His research paid off and the design worked extremely well along with bringing them closer to nature. He and his family lived there for 30 years until he moved down to Denver. Boyd was promoted to become the Manager of Upjohn’s Consumer Products Division for a 10-state area. Boyd’s outgoing nature and ability to establish new procedures and sales approaches brought success and a growing network of customers, ultimately gaining recognition from the leadership in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Although other job offers and promotions came his way, his love of the west and Colorado kept him here.

Boyd’s travels took him to Montana frequently and he became a collector of Charlie Russell bronzes and art of current Western painters and sculptors. His house in Evergreen was a virtual museum of bronze sculptures and paintings.  Although he downsized when he moved to Denver, he brought many of his favorite sculptures and paintings which grace his home. He continues to journey to Great Falls, Montana to attend the annual fund raiser for the C. M. Russell Museum where he meets artists and old friends.

Boyd has two children, two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. His daughter, Kim, is a Pharmacist in Rangely, Colorado and son, Bruce, lives near Knoxville, Tennessee and owns nine Sonic drive-in restaurants. For the past 25 years, Boyd has been very close friends with Kathlynne Smith, a Montview member who first introduced him to Montview. Boyd and Kathleen attend church every Sunday.  

Boyd’s love of athletics – downhill skiing, biking, pickle ball, tennis and golf – have continued his entire life. He enjoys season tickets to the symphony, reading, woodworking and learning new things. He even made a classic grandfather clock.  After meeting an Ollie instructor whose class in economics impressed him, Boyd took all the Ollie classes the instructor taught. 

Boyd shared that his grandmother lived to be 101 and both his parents lived to be 96, so he figured that he better stay active to enjoy all the years ahead of him.  Boyd’s life has been enriched by his priority to remain physically and mentally active, along with the value he places on personal relationships, maintaining friendships and being with others. One of the unwavering expectations for all employees at Upjohn was to be honest and never exaggerate the truth. Boyd feels that that particular expectation was consistent with the values from his parents and family and one that has guided him for 90 years.

– Submitted by Brooke Durland and Boyd Hillwertz

Jan McClain has always felt called to help people, volunteer and organize events, big and small, in churches, neighborhoods and Army bases around the world. Her generous spirit and contributions were recognized when she was awarded the First Army Military Wife of the Year!

Jan’s grandparents came to Oklahoma to claim homestead land in the ‘Sooner’ Land Rush in 1889. Jan was born in Alva, OK, a college town of 6000 residents, and remembers it as being a great place to grow up.  She and friends would ride bikes, have slumber parties, play with pets, perform in school plays and musicals and go to movies. She had an older sister and aunts and uncles nearby. Jan started voice training when she was nine and continued to pursue music throughout her life.   

Jan’s father owned a car body shop and later a dealership in Alva. Her mom, who could sew anything, worked in a department store as a buyer. Her Mom sewed the first strapless evening gown, in gold lame and gold taffeta, in about 1940 for Jan’s sister to wear at the University of Oklahoma. It was quite a sensation! When Jan was 15, she spent a year at a boarding school in St. Louis called Principia. While Jan was most reluctant to leave home, she found the experience to be a wonderful opportunity to interact with a very diverse group of students and receive an excellent education.  

Jan’s family was very involved in the Presbyterian Church in Alva. She attended the youth group, sang in the choir, participated in all the events and read the Bible with her mother daily. Jan received a scholarship in drama at the University of Oklahoma. At age 15, Jan had met an older, smart, handsome and romantic young man named Ken McClain. He told her he planned on marrying her someday. After four years of pursuing Jan, they married in 1952, since he was in the Army and being sent to fight in the Korean War. To support herself, Jan worked as a model for a local department store. Since she had switched her major to TV journalism, a friend alerted her to a job opening at a TV station in Oklahoma City; she was hired and worked there until Ken returned home.

While in the Army, Jan and Ken moved 17 times in his 20 year career: Ft. Sill, Oklahoma where their son was born; three locations in Germany where their daughter was born and where in Bayreuth, Jan arranged – on six hours’ notice – a dinner for eight at the Officers Club to host the American Ambassador and the granddaughter of Richard Wagner, among others; Jonesboro, Arkansas (for Ken’s second time in the Korean War); Lawton, OK (while Ken went to the Vietnam War); Ft. Knox, Kentucky; Killeen, Tx; and several of these locations for repeat assignments. In many posts, Jan was the President of the Officers’ Wives Club, the President of the German-American Women’s Club, sang in choirs in every chapel and church, organized groups and performed for countless gatherings, volunteered as Room Mother, Cub Scout Leader, even as a Red Cross ‘Gray Lady’ to support women needing assistance in the medical hospitals and dispensaries.

Ken had a junior officer friend who had grown up in Ft. Collins and spoke highly of living there. When thinking about where to retire, Jan and Ken decided to visit a number of places along with Ft. Collins, to see this ‘idyllic town’ for themselves. Through another friend, Ken was recommended to a life insurance company and after a visit, was offered a job. Jan and Ken spent over 40 years in Ft. Collins and did find it to be ‘paradise.’ Through self-education and additional course work, Ken became a very successful registered investment advisor. 

Jan, always interested in learning new skills and helping others, volunteered for Meals on Wheels for over 20 years. She worked as a cosmetic specialist, first for Neusteters Department store and later as a commercial freelance specialist for seven companies. Jan loved that her job was helping women feel good about themselves and showing them how to look their best. She was given specialized training in skin care and color design by all the big cosmetic companies, such as Lancome, Elizabeth Arden and Estee Lauder. She was then hired by the different companies to promote their products in department stores and boutiques from Cheyenne to Colorado Springs. 

Ken passed away in 2010 after 58 years of marriage. Jan continued to live in Ft. Collins near her church (First Presbyterian Church of Ft. Collins), friends and many activities. In 2013, Jan moved to Parker to be near her daughter and her family. In 2017, Jan moved to an apartment in the Central Park neighborhood, following her daughter and her husband in order to be close to new great grandchildren coming into the world through her granddaughter. A friend from church in Ft. Collins suggested to Jan that if she was moving to Denver, she should visit Montview. Upon visiting, Jan was impressed by Montview’s traditional service, community involvement, classes and excellent music. She had found her Denver church-home. Jan, who has read the Bible through four times, had always participated in Bible studies. So, she and her daughter, shortly after moving to Central Park, decided to start one on their own. At first it was just the two of them. But thanks to Pat Shephard from Montview, several members joined not long after and the study has consistently had seven to eight members since! Jan and her daughter enjoy attending Montview together almost every Sunday.

Jan has two children, four grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Daughter Cathy, a retired banker and accountant, lives here and regularly assists Jan with appointments, groceries and support. Son David, retired from the CIA, lives in Texas and has long weekly phone conversations with his mom. Jan has retained her love of music, history, being with different groups of people, learning new subjects and staying on top of current events. Due to problems with her eyesight, she has started relying on the Talking Books Library and has a wonderful contact librarian who sends her an excellent selection of books that interest her. Every year, Jan reads over three dozen books and this year is no exception. She enjoys her apartment building for seniors in which she lives and participates in the Great Courses put on by the building, social gatherings with friends and her ability to walk in the gardens.

Jan’s faith was instilled by her mother, with whom she read the Bible daily as she was growing up. Jan’s lifelong positive outlook, generous engagement with and encouragement of others, spirit of volunteering, interest in learning, cultivating friends of all ages and her faith clearly have been strong influencers on Jan’s decades-long journey through life and a Montview member worth getting to know.

– Submitted by Brooke Durland and Jan McClain

Rosalie is not only one of Montview’s noteworthy Nifty Ninety Members but is also a 50-year member of Montview; this is her “Golden Anniversary at Montview!”

Rosalie grew up in an extended family that has deep roots in Texas. Born in San Saba, Texas (identified as the pecan capital of the world!), her father, a Presbyterian minister, moved the family to Sherman to a church near the campus of Austin College, a 150-year-old Presbyterian liberal arts college. The family then lived in Shawnee, Oklahoma, and finally in Haskell in West Texas, north of Abilene. Rosalie remembers family gatherings at her grandparents’ ranch in West Texas with lots of cousins, riding horses, exploring, and playing in sand, mud and water – loving the outdoors.

From about the age of five, Rosalie began playing the piano and later learned to play the organ. Her father used to say that he was training her and her sister to be pianists at his churches. Rosalie was rigorously trained musically and played for events year-round: at church, in school, for plays, choirs, and gatherings of friends. She continued to play instruments in college and earned a minor in music at Austin College. She has enjoyed practice time on the Montview organ, a privilege given to her by John Kuzma.

Rosalie graduated from a high school class of about 40 students at Haskell High School. There was never a doubt that she would continue her education and graduated from Austin College. In fact, her mother, one of seven children growing up on a ranch in West Texas in the early 1900s, had graduated from Texas Women’s College. How she paid for her education, no one knows. 

While in college, Rosalie met Bill, a business major. They married right after her college graduation in 1957. Rosalie taught high school English in Garland, Texas, and middle school English in Sherman, Texas, while Bill completed his degree. Among the jobs Bill held in their early years together was one as Business Manager at First Church, Dallas. Following that job, he was employed by Humble Oil Company, a small Texas company bought out by Exxon.  During the following eight years, three children were born as they moved 10 times, sometimes returning to a city in which they had lived at least once. However, the final move was to Denver in the 1970s. Rosalie returned to college for a M.A. in work with emotionally/educationally disabled students and was hired by Jefferson County School System. After a marriage of 19 years, she and Bill went their separate ways. Rosalie retired after teaching for 21 years.

In the 70s, she visited Montview Presbyterian which had been recommended to her by the organist at Austin College. She found the music attractive and the ministers thoughtful and welcoming; she was also intrigued by the church’s positions on social justice. She joined in 1975.

At a meeting early on, she noticed a quiet, single fellow who seemed interesting but retiring – Herb Johnson, who had worked for FEMA. She and Herb began a 20-year relationship enjoying Denver and each other’s company. Since they were both busy with work lives, children and church, they saw each other mostly on weekends. However, as they looked toward retirement, they married and enjoyed 18 more years together. 

Rosalie has three children: David, who lives in Denver and has two girls, one of whom is a vulcanologist; Andie, a fourth-grade teacher in Portland whose daughter just married; and Mary, a part of a minister couple who live in Ohio with two sons.

Rosalie and Herb enjoyed exploring Mexico, Canada, Europe, and many places in the US. On a visit to Morocco, Rosalie took the opportunity to ride a camel. To her surprise, the camel driver insisted that she ride sidesaddle, a first for Rosalie, who was not pleased.

During her many decades at Montview, Rosalie has served as an Elder twice, a Deacon, a Sunday School teacher, a member of the Heritage Committee, worked with the Anti-Discrimination Task Force, and served on many other committees. She continues to drive to Montview for committee meetings, the 11am service on Sunday mornings, and a variety of classes.

Rosalie reads books on a wide range of topics, keeps up with world affairs via The New York Times, walks her dog three times a day, participates in the West Side Fellowship group, and travels to see family and friends. She credits her longevity to good family genetics; close, supportive friends; a positive outlook (“There are so many small things going on to celebrate.”); being a good listener (“Listen to people who are quiet.”); and always being ready to learn new things.

– Submitted by Brooke Durland and Rosalie McCall-Johnson

Mary Schenk started life in a rural part of Missouri but ended up traveling the world, promoting connections between people living very different lives and sharing warmth and friendship regardless of people’s differences.

Mary grew up on a farm in north-east Missouri very near the border with Iowa.  She and her family lived adjacent to her paternal grandparents. Mary, an older sister and younger sister and brother walked to school (which had an outhouse) down dirt roads regardless if it was muddy, dusty or snowy. They helped gather eggs, gardened, helped can extra produce and took care of the livestock. She remembers riding bikes on the dirt roads, going to Saturday movie matinees for 10 cents and as a special treat, roller skating at the rink 50 miles away! Mary participated in 4-H: cooking, sewing skirts out of feed sacks on a treadle sewing machine and even raising a lamb.

The local Presbyterian Church was a big influence in the Schenk home. Their church was the most northerly of the Southern Presbyterian churches which had a legacy of supporting slavery and the Confederate cause. As Mary’s experiences broadened, she was able to see how she did not agree with that practice.

When Mary was a junior in high school, her family home burned down. Her Dad immediately began to rebuilding the home, in addition to planting spring crops.  Her mom worked as a Special Education Teacher. Her parents decided that Mary could go to Ontario, California to live with a paternal aunt who was a teacher in order for Mary to have some better opportunities. Mary graduated from high school in California in 1954. As a result of being in California, she began to explore the direction she wanted to go in life, her identity and her values.

Mary attended a junior college in California before transferring to Montreat College in North Carolina, near Ashville; then transferred to Park College near Kansas City. In college, she was introduced to a wide range of diverse and international students. A roommate who was attending college on a full scholarship invited Mary home for a holiday. The girl’s large family lived in a backwoods house with only two bedrooms, but the experience was warm and welcoming. Mary is still in contact with that roommate. Another close friend dated and later married a Black student from Alabama. Mary attended their 40^th wedding anniversary and stays in touch with their daughter.

After college, she taught for a while at a training center for developmentally disabled children in Poplar Bluff, southeast Missouri. She wanted to go into the Peace Corp, but she had an opportunity to move to Baltimore to work with preschool developmentally disabled children; then went on to work in a housing project before moving on to the Department of Social Services working with mothers and children. When an opportunity came up to work in San Franscisco, Mary moved to the west coast and worked for another 25 years with in-home-services for seniors. She took early retirement to help care for her parents in the family home in Missouri then moved to Denver about 10 years ago to be near her niece.

Over the years, Mary had become involved in the World Affairs Council, which is made up of organizations working to deepen their communities’ global perspective through speaker programs, discussion groups, and educational experiences. These organizations provide platforms for members to foster a deeper understanding of the world and promote informed civic engagement.  With them, Mary has traveled to Armenia, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, the Soviet Union, Germany, Austria and Australia. She had been involved in the International Hospitality Center hosting and accompanying visitors in California.

One thing not too many people may know about Mary is that she learned to fly a plane in a small plane when she was in her early 20s! Her Dad was a life-long learner, loved to travel and loved flying. He learned to fly in about 1949 and encouraged Mary to learn as well. Mary only flew solo one time but did not continue the interest, since she got air sick!  She still doesn’t feel so great in the back seat of a car.

Mary enjoys attending plays, reading, walking and being an art and history museum member. She participated in the Montview Women’s Book Group and helped regularly at the Women’s Homelessness Initiative when the women stayed overnight at Montview.

Mary credits her longevity to good genetics. Her Schenk grandfather lived to be 101 and her parents into their 90s. She loves to help people, is always curious to learn new things and enjoys weighing the pros and cons of situations to make an informed decision. A friend in San Francisco recommended that she contact Central Presbyterian as well as Montview, and she found her church home in both congregations. 

– Submitted by Brooke Durland and Mary Schenk

For residents in Iowa, first-in-the-nation primary season brings a stream of presidential hopefuls, state politicians and noteworthy people to towns large and small who show up at small cafes, libraries and homes to campaign. Barbara always attended these campaign meetings. In addition, over the years she personally met a variety of notables such as Elvis Presley, Paul Simon, Harry and Bess Truman, Bill and Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, Barack and Michelle Obama, Joe Biden (who she personally introduced at a cafe gathering) and Jimmy Carter, just to name a few. Clearly it pays to live in Iowa where the first-in-the-nation primaries made it possible for residents to engage in conversations with the movers and shakers of the world.

Barbara grew up first on two rental farms and then at age five they moved to a farm seven miles from Mound City, Missouri. In those days the farming was done with horses, and her home had no electricity or indoor plumbing until she was ten or twelve. The farm and home were across the black-topped road from the Bellevue Consolidated School, a two-story, stately brick building with grades one through twelve. For several years they boarded two teachers in their home. Her family lived a quarter of a mile from her maternal grandparents and uncle and aunt. She often walked to their house where she and her grandmother spent many hours talking.

She grew up helping in the garden, canning with her mother, tending the fruit trees, taking care of chickens, pigs, cows and horses and helping with laundry. She was the official lawn keeper. But it was not all work. She remembers riding the horses daily and playing house in the pines. The fun social event of the week was joining friends in town on Saturday nights for the “picture show” and walking the streets while her parents shopped and visited.

A big part of her family’s life was at the country Pleasant View Presbyterian Church where her mother was organist and floral arranger. She had an older brother, Bob, and they both were active in 4-H. Barbara even had a couple of steers which she raised and showed. She gravitated mainly to sewing and foods and won many ribbons.

Barbara’s mother was college educated and taught school for a while and her father, who moved to Missouri from New York State when he was nineteen, was very well self-educated, deliberative and successful in farming. When she graduated from high school in 1951 in a graduating class of three other girls, there was no question that she would go on to college. She chose Park College, a Presbyterian liberal arts college just outside of Kansas City, Missouri. The students had the opportunity of being ushers at events at the Municipal Auditorium. It was here that she got to usher the Trumans to their seats at the opera. After two years, she transferred to Northwest Missouri State College in Maryville, Missouri, which offered a more inclusive Vocational Home Economics program leading to more job opportunities. She graduated in 1956 with a degree in education and a major in home economics and easily got a job, along with two college girlfriends, ninety miles from home in Oakland, Iowa. Her salary was $3800. Her mother thought Oakland was much too far away for a single girl to drive alone but it worked out fine. Being close to Omaha and having her brother’s car while he was in the military meant they had wheels to have good times in the city. She still keeps in touch with those girlfriends sixty-five years later.

One memorable event occurred after the three of them attended a concert of Bill Haley and the Comets (“Rock Around the Clock”) who were opened by The Platters, a popular ‘doo-wop’ quartet who sang in close harmony and had the hit song “Only You.” Somehow, they got backstage, met the bands and had their photos taken with the musicians. They returned to school excited about their experience and showing their photos, even to the superintendent. The superintendent was not pleased! He shamed his three young teachers, of whom he was so proud, saying that they had lowered themselves by cuddling up with these Black boys. Barbara remembers that as one of her first experiences with racism. She still loves to hear the music of the 50s and 60s.

All three decided to move on and Barbara went to Bedford, Iowa to teach high school homemaking. As she pulled up to the door to unload her teaching supplies, three male teachers appeared and offered to help her. Gene Hannon was one of them and he asked her out that weekend. Thus began their twenty-three-year relationship. After two years of dating, she could tell that Gene was getting serious, but she was not ready to marry and settle down in small town Iowa. She wanted to see the world and have adventures. So, she got a homemaking job in Clear Lake, Iowa and took a six-week, thirteen-country grand tour of Europe with a small group of teachers and an elderly gentleman.

Here is where Barbara tells of a famous person encounter. Their tour took them on some nighttime adventures in Paris which included several nightclubs. At intermission in the Lido’s lounge, their elderly traveling companion spotted Elvis Presley in his military outfit with another soldier. He walked right up to him, shook his hand and introduced himself as a fellow Nashville native. “We girls just followed him, forming a circle with Elvis and his buddy. I just happened to be standing next to Elvis. As we chatted with him for several minutes, Elvis reached down and held my hand the whole time. In 1959, this was exciting!!”

Teaching in Clear Lake for a couple of years and Gene driving the four hours after ball practice for frequent weekends convinced them both that it was time. They were married July 29, 1961, in her home country church, Pleasant View. They bought a house and settled in Bedford to teach and raise a family.

They had two children, John and Maria. Barbara was a stay-at-home mother until both were in school. She then worked as an assistant librarian a couple of years until the superintendent convinced her to fill the high school Library Media position which necessitated her going back to school in summers and Saturdays to get certified in library science. She eventually was head librarian for the high school, middle school and elementary, made possible only by good assistants in both media centers. With her homemaking and school library careers, she taught 39 years, retiring in 1999.

Vacations were few and far between because of Gene’s coaching schedules. It won’t surprise many who know Barbara that she was very involved in countless ways volunteering to improve the lives of Bedford residents:

…singing in the Presbyterian church choir, teaching Sunday School for 25 years, participating in book and study groups, being active in the Women’s Association and more;
…being Program Coordinator for their church sponsored community service called Bridge to Care, which paired residents with volunteers who provided services such as transportation to medical appointments locally and to Omaha and Des Moines plus all manner of home support;
…actively working with the Taylor County Democratic Women, which raised money for candidates, like hosting an annual homemade ice cream booth at the county fair;
…joining (in 1958) an international organization, P.E.O., Philanthropic Education Organization, whose purpose is providing higher education opportunities for female students worldwide.
…volunteering extensively with the Bedford Area Development Center, whose purpose was to revitalize the historic downtown through economic development and preservation;
…being the lead organizer of the successful rehabilitation of the historic Conoco gas station into a welcome center and BADC office. Sadly, since her leaving Bedford, this has been abandoned because of lack of addressing mold and water problems.

Barbara and Gene were integral members of the Bedford community and they loved living there. She has stories of living the life of a coach’s wife, mothering and teaching. Gene died in 1984 when the children were in high school. Maria now lives in Denver and is the Human Resources Director of the Colorado Health Foundation. John, whose career with the federal Bureau of Reclamation rehabilitating rivers for successful spawning of salmon, is recently retired, and does Ironman Triathlons. He lives in Sacramento, California. Barbara has four grandchildren, two in Denver and two in California.

Barbara was not one to take road trips, leisure tours or cruises. Her preference has been taking work and mission trips through her church; fourteen of them to be exact! From Bedford to Central America (2), work trips to New Orleans after Hurricanes Katrina and Laura (3) where she learned to tile, finish drywall, install insulation and shingle roofs; well, mostly climbing and handing shingles to the men. They wouldn’t let the women use the power guns; Habitat for Humanity work efforts (5); and with Montview groups to Uganda and Zimbabwe, (1) with Borderlinks and (1) to Ipoderac Orphanage in Mexico. Rather than work trips which could often take jobs away from local residents, she values mission trips which emphasize developing relationships, increasing understanding of the culture and with NGOs that are assisting people to become self-supporting.

It was with great sadness but with anticipation that she decided to leave Bedford in 2010 and move to Denver to be close to her daughter’s family. During previous visits to Denver, she had visited Montview Church and was impressed with the wealth of educational, worship and service opportunities. She immediately became involved with Social Justice, Earth Care and Metro Caring. Five years of teaching ESL (English as Second Language) to stay at home refugee mothers expanded her appreciation of other cultures.

Barbara feels that modeling her life by examples set by her family, inspiration from pastors and friends, being active in social issues, spiritual practices and strong bonds with neighbors and community have enriched her life. Her intimacy with nature through daily walks and eating a healthy diet keeps her centered and at peace amid world turmoil.

She shared this quote by Miriam Adeney which expresses how she feels about living in Denver and having lived in Bedford, Iowa and the farming community near Mound City, Missouri: “You will never be completely at home again, because part of your heart will always be elsewhere. That is the price you pay for the richness of loving and knowing people in more than one place.”

– Submitted by Brooke Durland and Barbara Hannon

Ray Fedde was born in Denver and grew up in Park Hill. His mother, Gladys, had a nursing degree from Denver’s Presbyterian Hospital and his father, Oscar, was a jobber for Continental Oil Company and owned a petroleum bulk plant. He is a product of a mixed marriage. His paternal grandparents immigrated from Norway (Lutheran) while his maternal grandparents were Swedish (Presbyterian). His sister, Helen, was three years older. There were lots of relatives as both parents had seven siblings. There were cousins to play with when he visited family in Fowler, Colorado or York, Nebraska.

Even as a child, Ray loved taking things apart to see how they worked: radios, clocks or bikes.  He was fascinated by making hydrogen gas and was resourceful in obtaining chemicals. Cousin Paul, at CU, provided both chemicals and equipment. Ray and a friend made gunpowder to be used in cap guns or rockets. Once he made too much hydrogen sulfide but survived.  

Ray attended Park Hill Elementary, Gove Junior High and East High School, where he joined the Navy Reserve. After graduating in 1954, he attended St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota to study liberal arts, then went on to Colorado School of Mines for metallurgic engineering. After a year, Ray decided that college was not for him. His dyslexia has always made academics difficult. He activated his Navy Reserve and was sent to Norman, Oklahoma, Memphis, Tennessee and  Biloxi, Mississippi. Early in his service, he took a test for electrical specialties and aced the test.  He was sent to three different training programs to learn to maintain a high-altitude radar system. Ray appreciates that the teaching methodology which accommodated his dyslexia allowed him to be successful. With probable orders to Oahu, Ray and LeNee Streeter married and they moved to Eva Beach, HI, where daughter, Kerry, was born.

Ray was assigned as a radio operator with VR21 transport squadron which flew around the Pacific. On crew’s rest, he could explore Japan and visited the giant bronze Buddha at  Kamakura. He repaired LORAN navigation receivers when at home in the shop at Barbers Point. After two years, Ray’s Navy enlistment was up so he and his family moved back to the Park Hill neighborhood and they had Chris and Amy. He assumed the jobbership of Continental Oil Company from his father and ran it for 15 years.  

Ray has always enjoyed sculpture and had been inspired by the life-size bronze grizzly bear at the Museum of Nature and Science and the Buddha in Japan. Starting small, he had been fabricating and casting silver jewelry. Ray’s Pastor Vogel at Our Savior Lutheran Church asked him to cast chalices which would be made initially in wax for the first communion of new confirmands. The first year, it took two tries but they were finally successfully cast in his garage on Bellaire. The next year, they were cast in the studio he set up in an out-building on Quivas Street and it became a tradition. The Denver Post published an article about the unique project for the Church. Other small pieces were cast.    

Just as his oil business was shrinking, the Auraria community was being demolished to make way for the new campuses. That caused Oliver Lahr to close his foundry and sell his equipment.  Ray happened to see Lahr’s “Tools for Sale” sign so he purchased $10,000 worth of equipment and moved it to his station at 12th and Quivas. With the purchase came the opportunity to cast a 12-foot bronze fountain for the entryway drive at the new Broadmoor West Hotel in Colorado Springs. Thus, Fedde Bronze Works was born and the expansion of the foundry had begun.

Major sculptures have been cast and sent around the world to China, Saudi Arabia (commissioned by a prince), as well as to several states. Ray is especially proud of the Korean War Memorial in Atlantic City, NJ. There are too many in the Denver area for a complete list, but the Horse on a Red Chair at the Main Library, the bas- relief portraits at the Blair African-American Research Library on Welton, the MLK plaques on MLK Blvd., and an African Jesus crucifix at Regis University are examples. Ray was commissioned to design and cast a bronze  plaque honoring the work of his great aunt Elisabeth Fedde. She was a Lutheran Deaconess, trained as a nurse, who was assigned to work in Brooklyn, NY.  She ministered to the sick and the poor. She founded the Deaconess Hospital there and one in Minneapolis where she also worked. The plaque was installed in the church yard of her home church in Feda, Norway with Ray and Elisabeth attending.

Ray’s creative talents were utilized for many community projects. For one of Park Hill’s Elementary Carnivals, he built game stands, decorations, put together activities and was on the takedown team. The Denver Art Museum asked him to conduct some workshops to demonstrate the Lost Wax and sand-casting process in conjunction with their exhibits.

In the mid-70s, Ray and LeNee had parted ways and Ray was introduced by a friend to Elisabeth.  They married in 1980 and have a son, Matthew. Montview’s theology, programs, childcare provider, and proximity to his home on Eudora were attractive. They began attending and joined in 1986. It did not take long for Ray to volunteer to build a rainbow to go across the chancel for John Kuzma’s productions of Noye’s Fludde. For Musique and Masque productions, he built many props: creating a pumpkin carriage for Cinderella, carts for Brigadoon, a roof and milk cart for Fiddler on the Roof, eggs for Honk, Oz’s head (he played Oz), etc. Ray and Elisabeth have been involved briefly with Wayfarers, family retreats, MOB work trips and Deacons. Ray attended the Men’s Retreats, Open Chapel and adult education as he delved into spiritual and meditative practices.

Ray takes up hobbies enthusiastically. He purchased a neighbor’s Cal 20 sailboat and spent hours refitting it. It was moored at Cherry Creek Reservoir and Chatfield Reservoir. He and Elisabeth spent a week in San Diego where they took a course to be certified for bare boat sailing and a later course in Houston along with their son, Chris, to sail catamarans. They sailed bare boats in the Apostle Islands in Washington, the British Virgin Islands and Croatia. He became interested in celestial navigation and lately has been experimenting with electronics.

His daughter, Kerry, lives in Utah; Chris and Amy live in the metro area and Matthew lives in Minneapolis. Ray has five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. He is grateful that he has had remarkably good fortune as his interests led him into very interesting lines of work. He has had good health and the service of fine medical teams when needed. He has had the support of family and friends throughout his life. He feels his family modeled the importance of helping others, compassion and kindness. Those principles have guided his life.

– Submitted by Brooke Durland and Ray Fedde

Sue Leister may have begun her life in a quiet town in Oklahoma but through her travels she became aware of the desperate needs of street orphans in Ethiopia and took it upon herself to spearhead an effort to create an organization to help them, 8000 miles away from Oklahoma.

Sue was born in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, into a family of two brothers. Her father was a Savings and Loan Bank Manager and her mother a math and English teacher. The family moved twice, to Shawnee and Kingfisher, Oklahoma, farming communities where Sue remembers playing with friends, riding bikes, frequenting the local swimming pools and attending summer camp. Her high school graduating class had 37 students. The family attended a Southern Baptist Church multiple times a week. 

There was never any question in the family that all the children would attend college and Sue went to Oklahoma State. Her sophomore year she met an older student who was an art major. When he graduated, Sue dropped out of college and married him. Since Glenn Leister was in ROTC, he joined the Army and became a pilot who served two tours in Vietnam and made the Army his career.  Sue and Glenn moved around the world with their growing family of five children. They lived in Turkey, Germany, New Jersey, Texas, Kansas, California, Georgia, Alabama and Virginia.

Sue and Glenn were married 50 years and made sure to enjoy all the locations in which they lived, visiting local markets, restaurants, parks, attractions and school activities with their children. Pizza pie was first sampled in New Jersey, Georgia peaches, gooseberries in Kansas, barbecue in Texas and local crowder beans in Alabama. All were highlights, as was the history and culture surrounding each assignment.   

After their children were older, Sue returned to school, earned a degree in special education and taught children with learning disabilities for 20 years before retiring. She served in schools with Black populations, starting in Augusta, Georgia and was distressed with the lack of basic resources such as books and general classroom supplies. As Glenn was stationed in other locations, Sue continued to serve populations of minority children. 

Sue and Glenn retired in Virginia. Sue enjoyed book and creative writing groups while Glenn enjoyed aviation, writing and flying. Together, they had an antique business for about 10 years. Sue loved China, silver and linens; Glenn loved anything with gears or rust!

Sue had an opportunity to travel to Ethiopia with her cousin because her son was working in a hospital there. After much discussion, consultation and numerous trips to Ethiopia, Sue started a 501c3, Hearts Full of Happy, to help orphans get an education. After considerable work helping individual students attend school, she helped establish a school for these orphans, complete with uniforms and school supplies. Sue’s efforts have resulted in a school that educates 500 children from 1st to 6th grade. Many of the children who attended the school have been able to graduate from high school and university with help from Hearts Full of Happy. Sue has been able to stay in touch with several of these street orphans, who are now adults, well-educated and successfully employed. The daughter of one family with whom she does video calls refers to Sue as her “white grandmother from America!”

For years, Sue made annual trips to Ethiopia, staying for three to ten weeks to support these community efforts. Always ready to help families, she once needed to go by herself to a market to buy a donkey for a mother who earned 50 cents a day carrying mountains of firewood on her back to sell, getting badly bruised and cut in the process. (Sue learned a lot about how to select a good donkey!)  Her non-profit also bought a cow for a widowed man with four children. His dream was of having manure with which to plaster his hut along with milk for his children. 

On her very first day in the remote town of Tulgit, she was invited by the gardener at the home where she was staying, to a Suri Tribal wedding in the bush where she was the only English speaker and the huts were made of saplings and brush. Many of the children had never seen a white woman with white hair; the women wore only skirts, wore lip rings and earlobe rings, and the men, no clothes whatsoever. Amid the drums and excitement and at the urging of the women, she joined in the dancing and ululating (the celebratory, high pitched ‘trilling’ done by women), swaying, stomping and waving her arms until she needed to return to Tulgit. 

During her many trips to Ethiopia, she took various children and grandchildren. As a result of these experiences, one college aged granddaughter returned to Ethiopia with Sue four times and switched her major to public health and completed her Ph.D. at the University of Chicago. She is working at the Rutgers Cancer Institute as program director for community outreach. Another granddaughter was so moved by these trips that she switched her major from political science to nursing and works at St. Anthony Hospital.

Sue’s five children live in Phoenix, Virginia, New Jersey and Denver. Glenn passed away in 2006. After living alone for about two years in Virginia, Sue wanted to live closer to family and moved to a home in Central Park (Stapleton area). Given Glenn’s college major of fine arts, their children gravitated toward the arts, with one son being a fine artist and another being a “luthier” who makes stringed instruments and specializes in custom made violins.

While in Denver, Sue has volunteered as an Ollie instructor, leading multiple classes on Africa and memoir writing.  She enjoys attending a writing group, lectures, keeping up with current events, traveling and being with friends and family.

One Christmas, shortly after coming to Denver, Sue saw an invitation from Montview inviting people to the Christmas concert. Sue attended and was so impressed with the music that she began attending regularly. Serving on the Mission Committee was a natural fit and her expertise was most welcome.  Sue continues to stream Montview’s Sunday services and tries to attend in person about once a month.

Sue’s early experience in her family growing up and going to school with Indigenous classmates, living and raising children in two foreign countries and seven states, working in schools of all Black children and getting to know the plight of orphan children and rural families in Ethiopia, has shaped her life in ways that she could not have imagined growing up in Oklahoma. Over the decades, Sue’s curiosity, kindness, generosity and patience have helped her leave a legacy of hope for children and families who had little before they met her.

– Submitted by Brooke Durland

Mary Holleman grew up in Westfield, New Jersey, and spent summers on the shores of Barnegat Bay in the town of Ocean Gate. 

Mary loved being near the water and especially the competition of sailing sneakbox sailboats. Sneakbox sailboats are indigenous to the area and were perfected in the mid-1850s for crabbing and fishing on the bay. Mary was the Sneakbox Sailing Champion of the Barnegat Bay Yacht Racing Association in 1954 and 1955.

Before going to college, Mary volunteered at a nearby children’s home and became very interested in physical therapy.

Mary met her husband Paul in Boston when he was in law school at Harvard and she was getting a degree in physical therapy at Simmons College. After graduation, Paul accepted a position at Holme, Roberts and Owen in Denver and they spent their honeymoon driving across country to start a new life in Colorado.

Mary and Paul had three children, all of whom graduated from Manual High School: Martha, who was a Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal and now works as a social policy analyst in Baltimore; Fritz, a lawyer specializing in water rights, now living in Boulder; and Andy, also an attorney, who died unexpectedly in his 40s, leaving behind a young family.  

In the 60s and 70s, Mary and Paul were busy with children, summer and winter activities, multiple sports teams, family trips and being involved with Denver Public Schools and the integration issues of the time. Mary worked part- time at St. Luke’s and National Jewish hospitals with a wide age range of patients and volunteered at the children’s schools. 

Mary and Paul took many trips abroad over the years and took the children with them on occasion. They had a grand time. Mary enjoyed the Denver Symphony and the DCPA. She volunteered as a docent at the Denver Public Library. When the children were grown, she joined an Outward Bound women’s group to hike in Nepal. 

While raising their family, Mary and Paul were members of the Central Christian church in Denver. Mary had always admired the leadership and preaching at Montview and began attending services in 2015. In 2019, when Andy died, pastors Ian and Clover were especially helpful in comforting the family organizing a memorial service.

A few years ago, Mary moved to an apartment in one of Brookdale’s senior residences. She enjoys reading, attending her book group, participating in the lectures and events in the building, playing bridge, and spending time with her family and friends. 

Mary feels blessed to be celebrating her 90^th birthday and is grateful to the Montview community.

– Submitted by Brooke Durland, along with Martha and Mary Holleman

Pat Pascoe may have started her life in the small Wisconsin town of Sparta (population about 5,000 people), but she went on to improve the lives of Coloradoans by serving in the Colorado State Senate for 12 years, supporting legislation for the preschool project and a ban on assault weapons. She helped monitor Denver Public Schools (DPS) during desegregation efforts. 

Pat’s ancestors immigrated to Wisconsin in the 1850’s, where they were dairy and wheat farmers. She was the youngest of three daughters. When she was 18 months old, her father passed away from pneumonia at a time when penicillin was not yet available. Her mother went to work and became a valued payroll and accounting manager at the local Army base, Camp McCoy.

Pat remembers Sparta as being a lovely place to grow up. She began piano lessons at five years of age, went to the movies, had a kitten, walked to school and spent time with friends. She admired her paternal grandmother who was independent and hard working. She rose at 5am, baked pies and hung laundry before anyone else got up. Her Dad’s family was particularly close and Pat spent time with her many cousins.  

After the war, her mother was uncertain about where she might find a civil service job, so Pat went to live with her paternal aunt and uncle in Glendale, California for one year.   Pat and her sisters returned home when her mother took a job with the Military Pay Division and moved the family to St. Louis. Then, three years later, her mom was given the choice of moving to Indianapolis with the Army or Denver  with the Air Force and she chose Denver’s Air Force Finance Center. 

In Denver, Pat attended Aurora High School her junior and senior years and after graduation, attended the University of Colorado on a scholarship. Fortuitously, during her freshman year, she went on a blind date and met Monte Pascoe, who was home for spring break from Dartmouth College. For the next three and a half years, Pat and Monte saw each other during holidays and summers and wrote letters back and forth. Not long after graduation in 1957, Pat and Monte were married. 

Monte attended Stanford Law School while Pat taught school and supported their new life together. After Monte was accepted into a Denver law practice, they returned to Denver and began raising a family. Monte became involved in the Denver Democratic Party, serving as the State Democratic Party Chairman, running Hubert Humphrey’s campaign in Colorado and making runs for the Denver School Board and for Denver Mayor. Having become an expert in water law, conservation, water rights, river health and water storage, Monte was appointed by Governor Lamm as the Director of Colorado Natural Resources Department. Later, Mayor Federico Peña appointed him to lead the Denver Board of Water Commissioners, where he served for 12 years. He died in 2006.

After Monte’s run for the school board on a desegregation platform, Pat became involved in DPS Court ordered supervision of their desegregation efforts. She and a team of others were tasked with making sure that every school in Denver Public Schools was visited twice a year to ensure effective desegregation. Pat wrote a  book on the subject, A Dream of Justice: The Story of Keyes v. Denver Public Schools. Pat returned to school for a master’s and Ph.D. in English from University of Denver. She taught English at Kent School, Metro and D.U. 

In 1988, Pat ran for a Colorado Senate seat in Denver. She not only won; she served three terms, totaling 12 years. Her areas of interest and concern were education and improving the lives of women and children. She sponsored bills on preschool, childcare, bilingual education and gun control (which generated threats on her life), and was successful passing bills reducing wood smoke pollution, providing spousal protection, freedom of press for students and creating an organ donor registry. She chaired the Public Policy and Planning Committee and the Education Committee in the Senate, as well as the Senate Democratic Caucus.

Pat and Monte were married 49 years and, together, were a powerhouse team of dedicated, energetic public servants who motivated, organized, researched and helped people all over Colorado from Montview to the state capitol. They had four children, one of whom did not survive infancy. Sarah taught social studies in high schools in Douglas County and then became an instructional coach. She was the first teacher in her school to win the Apple Award presented to an outstanding teacher. Ted started his social justice work by spending two and a half years in the Peace Corp in Senegal before returning to Denver. He is the Executive Director of Senior Support Services, Denver’s only day-shelter exclusively for people 60 years and older, providing meals, support for housing and medical care, as well as emotional, behavioral and crisis support. Will, who battled cystic fibrosis, worked in political offices in Washington before returning to Denver where he worked in the state property tax exemption division before his health forced him to retire.  He passed away in 2018. Pat has one grandson who is a biologist.

In 2011, Pat wrote: Helen Ring Robinson, Colorado, Senator and Suffragist. Mrs. Robinson was the first woman state senator in Colorado, elected in 1912, before any woman served in the U.S. Congress or the British Parliament. (One can find this book in Montview’s library.)

Monte grew up in Montview and Pat and Monte raised their children in the fold of Montview’s Sunday School and youth groups. Pat and Monte were very involved in Montview as elders, members of pastor search committees, and serving on lectureship committees bringing outstanding speakers to Montview. Pat worked on the committee to integrate the church in the 1970s, served on the mission and education committees, was a Sunday School teacher, and for many years sang in the choir. Monte read every book about Paul that he could find. He and Pat went to Greece and Turkey “following in the footsteps of Paul.”  When he returned home, he taught a class about Paul at Montview.

Currently, Pat streams the Sunday services and programs and periodically attends special events. She continues to be interested in current events, US politics, music, renaissance literature, attends a book group and plays the piano. 

One surprising and little-known event in Pat and Monte’s life was that on a trip to New York City, a friend got them an appearance on the TV quiz show Two for the Money. While they had fun, they were a little embarrassed at their TV notoriety.  They did win $500!

Pat credits her longevity to ‘luck’ but feels grateful every day for the life that she has been able to enjoy and for her many opportunities and experiences. She readily praises Monte for the unexpected avenues that he opened in their lives, the novel ideas that he was always coming up with and the family that they both cherished and nurtured.

– Submitted by Brooke Durland