Jack (John) W. Heckendorn
March 21, 1925 – December 28, 2013
and
Carol L. Heckendorn
March 22, 1932 – December 25, 2013Jack was born and grew up in Denver. He was the son of George and Mildred Alida Heckendorn. His mother named him Jack, but he was Christened John William Heckendorn. He was a cheerful child who smiled in all his pictures.

His father died when he was not yet 16 and he became the father figure to his younger siblings, who were James P, Marian Alida, and Joseph D. Heckendorn. His family moved to Boulder where he took a job in the University Print Shop and started studying Electrical Engineering at CU.

Carol was born in Boulder the day the banks closed, the daughter of Isaac and Pearl Estelline Spitzer. Her father was working on his MA in Economics but agreed to take over a farm offered to him by his father-in-law. Carol rode to Kansas in a model A when she was only a few months old. She grew up on the Kansas farm with a sister and brother, Virginia and Howard Spitzer. She loved to read and achieved the highest scores on the State of Kansas Education Exam as a high school senior.

Jack and Carol met at the Wesley Foundation on the CU campus. They were married March 10, 1951. They lived in Boulder for almost 60 years, then moved to Portland, Oregon to live with their oldest daughter and their son-in-law. This allowed them to be nearer to their grandsons and other daughters.

Jack was a Printer/Compositor and an Assistant Scoutmaster for nearly 50 years. He loved camping and teaching young men to respect nature and each other. His goal in Scouting was to assure that every boy who joined achieved First Class. He was exceptionally accomplished at repairing printing presses and other equipment. He worked with a Heidelberg press to produce embossed and cut work invitations and other fancy printing.

Carol was a known as “Mama Heck” by many because of her kind and caring nature. She was an excellent seamstress and made beautiful clothing and wedding dresses. She returned to college after her children were grown and became the namesake for an award presented to students active in Psi Chi, the Psychology Honors club. After graduation she worked with Boulder Attention homes and with the juvenile court probation office. In later years she worked for the Boulder County 20th Judicial District Courts.

After 62 years of marriage, Jack died three days after Carol, who died early Christmas morning. He was 88 and she was 81.

They are survived by their children: Georgia Bosse, Daniel Heckendorn, Eloise Ariza Rodriguez and Alida Booth; plus three sons-in-law; four grandsons; two granddaughters-in-law; and one great-grandson.

A celebration of their lives will be held on June 21 at Meeker Park Lodge near Allenspark in Colorado. Please honor them by reading to children or donating to an organization that helps youth.