Obituary of Lela Juanita Morrow

Lela Juanita Morrow passed away January 17th, 2023 at the age of 83. Born in China Grove, NC, to the late James Aaron and Flonnie Geneva Cartner, she was the oldest of four daughters who grew up in a tiny four room house and picked cotton to pay for pencils for school. She was a natural-born teacher, leader, mentor, protector, and a dedicated woman. After graduating from Appalachian State Teachers College in 1962 and beginning her teaching career, she married Vernon Cleve Morrow in 1964 with her first grade class in attendance. She primarily taught first and second grade classes, though she taught many college classes, passing on her tremendous wealth of knowledge and passion for teaching. She retired after more than 46 years as an educator, most of which were in District 11 in Colorado Springs, CO.

As a deep believer that children are our future, her limitless capacity for love and kindness, and her courage to stand up for those in need, she created a legacy of countless lives touched and even saved. A keen observer and a dedicated woman of action, her classroom was always filled with endless possibilities. Her guidance, not only in the basics of academia but in life, were but a small part of what she offered her students and their parents. She humbly refused many award nominations as well as completing her PhD dissertation because she felt they would distract from her mission of providing her full attention to each and every student. Her preferred means of acknowledgement was having a previous student call her or visit her classroom years later.

She is survived by her daughter, Heidi, her son, Ryan, and her honorary son, Bill Hahn ["HahnSon"]. She is also survived by her sisters, Marie Osborne [Bill; deceased] and Rosette Inman [John], her sisters-in-law, Florence Brainerd [Jim], Gail Dawkins [Roy; deceased], and Grace Fitzpatrick [Bill]. With a soft spot in her heart for animals, she rescued numerous furry babies, many of whom likely would not have lived more than a few more weeks or months, and gave them all the love they could handle, often extending their lives by months or even years.

If you had the honor of knowing her, you know the strength and kindness that she showed everyone she met. She loved her family, her students, all furry babies, her home, her community, her country, reading, theater, musicals, gospel music, Elvis, traveling, nutrition, and nature.

She will be remembered in loving fondness by those that were blessed with her strong, loving presence. Intelligence, intuition, family, and lifelong friends were her blessings. For her, true joy was expressed through supportive care of others. If you were touched by Mrs. Morrow, Juanita to her friends and family, we encourage you to join us in celebrating her life at 1:00 PM on Saturday, May 13th, 2023, at Stratton Elementary School, address: 2460 Paseo Rd, Colorado Springs, CO 80907. Please park in the school parking lot or on the street and proceed to the rear of the school. Bring your own chair and memories to share.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Denver Performing Arts Center [www.denvercenter.org] or MaxFund Animal Wellness Center [www.maxfund.org].

In her honor, a tree will be planted at Nancy Lewis Park at 2615 Logan Ave, Colorado Springs, CO 80907, where her name is also enshrined on the remembrance wall.