Nancy Josephine Wuerfmannsdobler

Nancy Josephine Wuerfmannsdobler, 79, formerly of Salida, died October 2, 2022, at Forest Ridge Senior Living in Woodland Park, Colorado from complications related to Parksinson’s disease.

Nancy was born in Denver on February 24, 1943, to Paul and Josephine (Cutsinger) Whitson and raised in the Denver area with her brothers Jim and Larry Whitson. After graduating from Westminster High School, she completed a B.A. in elementary education at the University of Northern Colorado. 

Upon completion of her degree, Nancy joined her parents and brothers in Salida, Colorado where they had moved to run a dairy, later transformed into a fish hatchery. Nancy was hired as an elementary school teacher at Longfellow Elementary School and taught 4th and 5th grades and as a substitute for seven years.

She met Franz Xaver (“X”) Wuerfmannsdobler in spring 1966 during Salida’s annual summer festival, the FIBArk whitewater kayak races. Originally from Germany, X came to Salida for the kayak races and returned to work in the pressroom at The Mountain Mail. When they first met, she asked if he drank coffee and made a coffee date. It took several more dates before she finally told X that she didn’t actually like coffee. They married on August 18, 1966, within three months of meeting, and remained married until X’s death in 2020.

The newlyweds moved into a small house just outside of Salida. Originally built as a caretaker’s cottage by Fooses Lake, they took on remodeling that more than tripled its size over the next fifty years. Over the years, the house was a meeting point for family gatherings and a home base for Nancy’s many pursuits. It was a full and active home, with two boys, at least one family dog, and other pets including at one point a ring-neck dove that she hand-fed and brought inside during the winter.

Nancy left her teaching position in 1970 to focus on raising her children. However, education remained a lifelong calling and passion for Nancy. She played an active role in the education of both her sons, was a constant presence at School Board meetings, operated a home daycare business, and was one of the founders of the Salida Academic Booster Club, an organization that recognizes academic achievement through scholarships and provides extra resources to educators through grants.

Nancy loved children’s books and after her time as a teacher, then raising children and running the home childcare, she continued a lifelong passion for a beautiful picture book or a well-told chapter book.

Nancy was a master craftswoman and seemed to always scale her projects to the size of a whole classroom. She stocked her pantry with canned jams, jellies, fruit and tomatoes, some from her own large garden. She engaged in every manner of handicraft work from tole painting and macramé to woodburning and sewing. Nancy especially excelled in her cross-stitch work, winning ribbons at the Chaffee County Fair. She also enjoyed candy making, especially during holidays like Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Easter, when dozens of boxes and plates were shared with friends and family around Salida and across the country. In recent years, as Parkinson’s disease began to set limits on her activities, Nancy still loved to be a part of any creative activity, sharing her skills and directing the work of others when she was no longer able to do the work herself.

Nancy was an active leader in Cub Scout Pack 60 and Boy Scout Troop 60, supporting her sons, while also carrying on the Scout leadership that she experienced when her father and brothers were in Scouts in the Denver area.

She also had a passion for genealogical research, tracing her family history, and playing an active role in the Chipeta Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She loved to share stories from past generations and collected many family documents, including a letter sent from an ancestor written from a Civil War battlefield.

As Nancy made Salida her home for over 55 years, one of her most favorite activities was spending time at the rustic family cabin, Rock ‘N Pine, in Garfield. The area changed significantly over the years: the train stopped traveling over Monarch Pass, fewer bears roamed through the area, and basic cabins turned into mountain ski homes. But at Rock ‘N Pine, there was always a fresh pot of coffee and delicious smells (biscuits with homemade jam, pancakes and bacon, Sunday dinners) and a hearty welcome to all passing by. Nancy and X created a tradition of ringing in the 4th of July with special cowbells at the cabin each year.

In her final years, Nancy’s favorite moments came from spending time with her grandson Xaver. 

Nancy was preceded in death by her husband Xaver Wuerfmannsdobler in May 2020. 

Nancy is survived by her sons Franz Wuerfmannsdobler (Lisa Mao) and Hans Wuerfmannsdobler (Teresa Mora); grandson Xaver Wuerfmannsdobler; brothers Jim Whitson (Cindy) and Larry Whitson (Debbie); her aunt Phyllis Swanson; and numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews.

An in-person memorial gathering will be held in 2023. Arrangements were with Mountain Memorial Funeral Home in Divide, Colorado.

Online condolences may be offered on the tribute wall of this page. Cards or letters can be mailed to Franz Wuerfmannsdobler, 3740 Appleton St. NW, Washington, DC 20016.

Memorial contributions may be made to either:

Shavano Academic Booster Club (SABC)
PO Box 145
Salida, CO 81201
Attn: Paige Judd (719-539-5615)

Support Our Schools Salida (SOSS)
Stotler and Young
1208 C. St
Salida, CO. 81201
Attn: Danny Stotler

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