Angela "Angie" Christina Mendenhall

Angela “Angie” Mendenhall, lately of Thornton, Colorado, passed away on Thanksgiving Day, after declining health. She was born 98 years ago in the small town of Capulin, Colorado as Angela C. Quintana to Rosabel and Jasper Quintana. She was their seventh child of what would be a total of twelve children. She was raised there on the family farm among her large family and among many nearby relatives in that picturesque San Luis Valley community.

She grew up on that family farm doing her part to keep it running. She has spoken warmly many times of her father putting her to work on the tractor.

After she grew up and graduated from Capulin High School, she moved to the Denver Metropolitan area with her sister, Filomena “Phyllis”. It was there that she met Robert “Bob” Mendenhall from Ohio, who at that time, was in the U.S. Air Force and stationed at Lowry Air Force Base. After dating for a couple of years, they were married on August 1, 1951. As a military couple, they would be stationed in places like Texas, Kansas, and Massachusetts. Angie particularly loved Cape Cod and expressed many times her willingness to vacation there. They lived in many places in the United States, and they made many friends along the way, some of them for life. From the hundreds of photographs, letters, and cards that they left behind, it was obvious that they had many life-long friends scattered across this country.

At some point in his military service, Bob transferred to the U.S. Army, which led to him being deployed to Japan and to combat zones in Vietnam. During those deployments, Angie would return to Colorado and live with relatives in Denver and in the San Luis Valley. After Bob completed his military service, they moved back to Colorado to settle down. Besides Angie working in office administrative roles, for several years she and Bob owned and operated a Winchell’s Donuts franchise and much later, owned and operated a flower shop in Longmont. Her many years of business management experience served her well throughout the rest of her adult life. Much later, despite the difficulties of being without Bob, the onset of total blindness, and suffering from other ailments, she decisively handled her own financial affairs and made her own medical decisions until nearly the end of her life.

Much like their military lifestyle, they periodically moved from house to house both locally and in different cities. They moved between several houses in Denver, Northglenn, the Family Farm, Longmont, and finally in Pueblo West. They traveled extensively throughout the country by car and by their very large recreational vehicle. They would also spend winters in Arizona. From those same photographs, letters, and cards, it was clear that their travels around the country kept the relationships with their network of friends energized.

After Bob retired, they moved to Pueblo West, where they lived happily until Bob’s death in 2006. Her sister, Victoria, helped her deal with his passing. From that time forward, Angie lived with Victoria at her house in Thornton. For about 19 years, they lived together, prayed together, and kept each other company. She was an important member of Victoria’s family, especially where Victoria’s grandchildren and great-grandchildren were concerned. She was a very good playmate for young, happy children who have been close to Angie their whole lives and love her very much. With the rest of the family, Angela would go on family vacations, family functions, such as birthdays, weddings, and holiday celebrations.

Last year, Angie broke her hip at home, which forced her to move away from her sister and ultimately into an assisted living facility. The past few years have been very difficult for Angie, but through it all, she never stopped being her warm-hearted, caring, good humored, outgoing, and kind self. This was where her final trial and tribulation led to her passing on Thanksgiving Day. She is already missed and there is an empty space next to Victoria that can’t be filled.

Angie is survived by her sisters, Victoria and Clara, and brothers, Armando and Jasper. She was preceded in death by her parents, her sisters, Sister Jovita, Eva, Josie, Filomena, and Matilda, and her brothers, Elijio, and Adan.

A visitation will be held at Olinger Crown Hill Mortuary & Cemetery, located at 7777 West 29th Ave, Wheat Ridge, CO 80033, on December 11, 2025, from 10:00 am to 11:00 am.

The Liturgy of the Word will follow at the same venue from 11:00 am to 12:00 pm.

The committal service will take place at Fort Logan National Cemetery, 4400 W Kenyon Ave, Denver, CO 80236, on December 11, 2025, from 1:00 pm to 1:30 pm.