Jean Frances Manion

How does one take stock of and honor a person’s one precious life, from their first breath to their very last? Any life is difficult to measure and describe, yes, but a long one proves perhaps all the more complex–and all the more astonishing. Born November 27, 1935, in Little Falls, Minnesota, Jean Frances Altendorf Manion lived through a world war, many additional US wars and conflicts, sixteen presidents (bookended by FDR and DJT), integral civil rights movements, the moon landing, and myriad historical and personal events glorious, tragic, and banal. She attended college, worked for a few years, married, reared three children, pursued passions, nurtured friendships, volunteered, and had fun. On April 10, 2026, after ninety years of living, she died peacefully at Holly Creek Retirement Community, telling us in no uncertain terms many times in the preceding days that she was “ready to go,” that she wanted to be with her beloved husband Larry, her cherished daughter Sarah, and her many family and friends who had gone before her.

Daughter of Edward Altendorf (Army dentist) and Frances Simonet (teacher and world traveler) and younger sister to Alice, Jean moved to Denver when she was a child, attended Most Precious Blood, St. Mary’s Academy, East High School, and then earned a Speech Therapy degree at the University of Colorado at Boulder. For a time she did some modeling, and an eleven-foot photo of her holding a pair of skis, beautiful smile on her face, graced the entrance of the Ski Information Center on Colfax. After graduating CU in 1958, she married her high school sweetheart, Larry Manion, who had earned her love through his irreverent humor, gentle nature, and inimitable charisma. Early in their marriage they spent an unforgettable summer camping on Vermilion Creek in northwest Colorado so Dad could complete his geology master’s thesis involving the mapping of Irish Canyon. They then moved to Casper, Wyoming, where they had their first child, Kerry, and then to Lafayette, Louisiana, where they had their second child, Mary, and then finally back to Denver, where they moved into their South York Street house in 1967 and had their third child, Sarah.

The iconic red-brick York Street house with four apple trees in the backyard and a weeping willow in the front was where Mom and Dad finally put down roots.

Under Mom’s care and management, for decades that house was a haven for

holiday dinners, raucous parties (both sanctioned and later, when we were in high school, unsanctioned), backyard sports, laughter, neighborhood games, and classic 70s tv shows that we’d watch as a family like Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom, Little House on the Prairie, and The Carol Burnett Show. In addition to managing the taxing job of caring for three children, Mom served as our neighborhood’s Republican Party precinct committee person and president of the Rocky Mountain Association of Geologists Auxiliary. She also volunteered with her sorority Delta Gamma’s philanthropies for the blind. Her many passions included entertaining, bridge, politics, and Denver sports. For years she and Dad enjoyed great Broncos tickets on the fifty-yard line at Mile-High Stadium, and had season tickets to Rockies Baseball from the beginning, often riding their bikes from Wash Park to Coors Field for games. She also loved alpine and cross-country skiing, opera, golfing, scuba diving, traveling, and the Rocky Mountains.

Mom’s life is measured not in awards or grand accomplishments but rather in her staunch bearing through the ebbs and flows of the times, and in her steadfast forbearance, strength, good humor, and kindness. She modeled for her children the importance of voting (even if we didn’t always support the same candidates), the value of saving and not wasting, the satisfaction of labor well-done, the joys of fostering deep friendships, the work involved in marriage, and the power of selfless love. She cared for Dad during his difficult final few years with Parkinson’s and supported her daughter Sarah in her fierce battle with ovarian cancer. She rarely complained. Mom was strong, the German stoic kind, and while devastated by these losses, she faced them with courage, understanding that the staggering miracle of life comes with an inescapable price. After these two tragedies and in response to her failing eyesight, hearing, and mobility, she found comfort and meaning in a powerful reconnection to her own personal faith.

Fact is, Mom lived a rich and darn lucky life: She was born to loving parents and took advantage of a good education and enjoyed a vibrant, vital sixty-six-year marriage and had three daughters who, yes, could drive her mad with their youthful shenanigans, but whom she loved deeply and guided through their most trying years and with whom she remained close through her final days. She enjoyed great health for eighty years, and, toward the top of her list of life-span good luck, she had many close friends who did fun, interesting things with our dad and her, laughter being the predominant sound and joy the predominant emotion.

Jean Altendorf Manion is preceded in death by her parents, sister, husband, and daughter Sarah. She is survived by her daughters Kerry Weissman and Mary FitzSimons, Mary’s husband Dan FitzSimons, and her three grandsons, Jack FitzSimons, Ben Weissman, and Gunnar Holmes.

A celebration of life will be held at Holly Creek Retirement Community on Wednesday, June 24th at 10:00am. 5500 E. Peakview Ave., Centennial, CO 80121.

Donations can be made to the Colorado Gynecological Cancer Alliance in mom’s name in honor of her daughter Sarah Manion. Checks can be mailed to: Colorado Gynecologic Cancer Alliance. 8801 E. Hampden Ave, Suite 104, Denver, CO 80231. Please write “In memory of Jean Manion” on the memo line. Or to donate electronically, please go to https://www.gyncancercolorado.org/how-to-help. For any questions, please call CGCA at 303-506-7014. Thank you.