Claudia Pennington

Claudia was born on March 26th, 1936 in Windsor, CO to Andrew and Clara Tongish, the 3rd child after brother Virgil and sister Shirley.  She was born in a snowstorm, and out of her 85 years of life, she recalled only a handful of times it didn’t snow on her birthday.

She grew up in Windsor and made life-long friends Virginia, Lois, Mickey, Sally, Edna and Jeanette.  She enjoyed spending time with her dad at the Windsor Lumber Yard, and hunting rabbits.  She raised chicks and loved a friend’s horse she rode and adopted named Flicka.

After graduating from Windsor High School in 1954, Claudia attended Colorado State University in Ft. Collins, waitressing in the summers at the Starlight Cafe in Windsor.  She met her husband Jack while working in Windsor where he managed a jewelry store owned by his uncle Howard Weiss that was across the street from the cafe.

Claudia and Jack were married on July 28, 1957, and shortly thereafter moved to Anchorage, in the territory of Alaska, where the very next year they welcomed their first son, Michael (1958). In April of 1958, they returned to Colorado, staying temporarily in Wheat Ridge with Jack’s parents. They then moved to and managed an apartment building on Corona Street, until it was torn down.  They then moved to a house on Humboldt street in Denver, where they soon welcomed their second son Philip (1960) and first daughter Tamara (Priest, 1961). They purchased their first home two years later in Aurora where they lived for 7 years.  They saw an opportunity to purchase a brand-new home that was Claudia’s dream home for 51 years, and she and her family settled in Lakewood in 1968. In 1978, Claudia and Jack received the surprise of their lives in a 4th child, their second daughter Erin (Amos). Claudia & Jack opened their home to a few foster children as well as to many people who found themselves down and out for a time. She was always quick to share her blessings with those in need around her.

With 3 children under the age of 4, Claudia went to Denver University where she earned both a BFA and teaching certificate.  She did some substitute teaching until a full-time position opened, and in 1966 she began a 31-year career, teaching visual arts at North Middle School in Aurora. In 1994, she earned a Master’s degree in Discipline-Based Art Education at University of Northern Colorado, the crowning achievement of a career spent inspiring people in the creative arts. She retired from Aurora Public Schools in 1997, going to work part-time at The Ark Bookstore until it closed in 2005. She returned briefly to teaching art at Christian Fellowship School from 2005 to 2008.

In retirement, Claudia continued cultivating art ideas, and she traveled some, spending her 50th wedding anniversary with her daughter Erin who was celebrating her 1st anniversary in Banff, Canada. In later life she often talked of one day being “the next Grandma Moses”, and pursuing voice-over acting.

On Thanksgiving 1972 in the town where she was born, Claudia met Jesus Christ along with her whole family, and began attending Bear Creek Evangelical Presbyterian church in Lakewood. She enthusiastically worshipped at a few churches for the remainder of her life, including Vineyard Southwest and Smokey Hill, and Gateway on Mt Zion.  At each of these churches, she made lifelong friendships that she treasured. She was happiest when learning about God, working in the Healing Room Ministry, and on the Prayer Team, which reflected her deep desire to serve and love God and people.  She loved spending time with family and friends.

Claudia is survived by her husband Jack, her 4 children and their spouses, (Lisa [Kirmer] Pennington, Gail [Wright] Pennington, David Priest & Daniel Amos, brother Virgil, grandchildren: Joshua (wife Autumn), Kelly (husband Eric), William & Eleanor, Scott Resseguie (Gretchen’s surviving husband), her great-grandchildren: Everett, Myles, and Phoenix along with numerous nieces, nephews and extended family and friends who miss her dearly. She was preceded in death by her father, mother, sister and grand-daughter, Gretchen Ann (Pennington) Resseguie.

Despite some physical difficulties in her later years, Claudia lived well, loved deeply and served Jesus with her whole being. She died in Lakewood, Colorado on July 15, 2021.