Rivena Dillon

Rivena Dillon, age 25, passed away in Cottonwood Heights, Utah on January 28, 2018. She was born September 5, 1992 in Longmont, Colorado, grew up in Thornton, Colorado, and most recently resided in Denver. Rivena graduated in 2011 from Horizon High School, and completed the Back End Engineering Program at Turing School of Software and Design. After high school, Rivena's kindness and compassion for others led her into several years as a full-time volunteer - first with FEMA Corps, traveling across the United States helping others cope with the aftermath of natural disasters, and then teaching English to young children at two different schools in Suzhou, China. She attended Colorado School of Mines and went on to attend both Metropolitan State University and the Turing School of Software and Design in Denver. Prior to her most recent job as a web developer for RealEyes Media, Rivena had been a well-loved barista at a downtown Denver Starbucks. Rivena was a voracious reader, consuming everything from non-fiction Brian Greene string theory to sci-fi fantasy. As a kid, she looked forward to the midnight releases of every new installment of the Harry Potter books, and would read them cover to cover over the next couple days. She loved to walk for hours on end listening to podcasts, opting to sell her car after graduating from high school and relying exclusively on her feet and public transportation to get around. She loved being outside, soaking up the beauty of nature in the smallest possible ways and giving it life in her own writing. She enjoyed wintertime snowboarding with her sister and Dad, and in the summer summited five of our state's 14'ers. She traveled the world with her family, and shared a deeply personal unspoken bond with her Mom. She chose to eat as a vegetarian based on her compassion for all living creatures, and she was an avid Star Wars fan. When she received the call in 2015 that she was a perfect donor match for a much needed bone marrow recipient, she eagerly put herself through the donation process. Rivena lived as a complex, brilliant, one-of-a-kind person with a quiet disposition and a wicked, pun-filled sense of humor. Rivena is survived by her parents, Kim and Corey Dillon of Thornton; sister, Madison Dillon of New York, New York; grandparents, Scott and Bonita Ekx of Platteville, Colorado, Karen and Tom Spahn of Reston, Virginia, and Terry and Jenny Dillon of Augusta, Maine; great grandmother, Valdean Peppler, and aunts, uncles and cousins, Brian and Rebecca Ekx of Johnstown, Colorado and Greg and Carrie Dillon and cousins, Liana and Phoebe of Missoula, Montana. A memorial service honoring Rivena will be Thursday, February 8, 2018, beginning at 2:00 PM, at Northern Hills Church, 5061 East 160th Avenue, in Brighton, Colorado 80602. All are welcome, and please come as you are. Whether that means you opt for a suit, dress, jeans, or shorts and flip-flops - which Rivena would have embraced - we welcome you being you. Rivena chose to give a quarter of her income to charities that were meaningful to her. We ask that in lieu of flowers, you consider a donation to either: charity:water (https://my.charitywater.org/rivena-dillon) or Against Malaria Foundation (https://www.AgainstMalaria.com/RivenaDillon)