Joanne Osborne Mizner, 1929-2011

Joanne Mizner died Oct. 1 following a stroke. She had suffered the inexorable decline of Alzheimer’s disease for many years. Her family was with her before and at the time of her death.

Joanne was born in New York City and educated at the Horace Mann Lincoln School. She graduated from Antioch College and received her master’s degree in early childhood education from Columbia University. Joanne worked at Bank Street, at The Anglo-American School in Rome, at The Rochester (N.Y.) School for the Deaf, at the Yale Child Study Center, at the University of Rochester Child Study Center and as the director of the University of Colorado John F. Kennedy Pre-school.

Joanne married her husband, George, in 1954, and they moved their young family to Denver in 1963. They became part-time members of the Vail community in 1974 and retired here full-time in 1992. Joanne loved her home and friends in Vail and was an early and continuous supporter of Bravo, the Vail Jazz Foundation, Betty Ford Gardens and Eagle Valley Hospice.

The most passionate and enduring interest in Joanne’s life was her family and the education and welfare of children. She was a talented teacher, an exemplary mother and a loving and devoted wife. Joanne was both elegant and wise – but most fundamentally, she was a kind, gentle person who accepted everyone for who they were. People, especially children, felt understood and safe with her. She made the world a better place.

Joanne is survived by her husband, Dr. George L. Mizner, of Vail, and her daughters, Dr. Gail E. Mizner, of Snowmass Village, and Susan P. Mizner, J.D., of San Francisco, by her son-in-law, Michael Kendrick, of Snowmass Village, and by her three grandsons: Matthew Kendrick, Zachary Kendrick and Jonathan Palash-Mizner. We will miss her enormously and carry her values and love with us always.

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A memorial service will be held in Vail Memorial Park at noon on Saturday followed by a reception at the Mizner residence. All friends and former associates are invited. In the event of inclement weather, the memorial will be at the house. Instead of flowers, contributions may be made to any charity of your choice that support the welfare of children.