Ida A Zanmiller, beloved wife, mother and grandmother passed away peacefully on March 12, 2020 in Colorado Springs. She was born on a farm near Northfield Minnesota on June 21, 1938, the youngest of ten children to Thomas and Alice Peterson.
Ida was raised in Northfield and went to Northfield High School where she had the nickname of PeeWee and was Snow Queen of the Winter Festival her Senior year. In High School, she met and fell in love with her husband Walter “Jerry” Zanmiller. Following high school Ida attended Northwestern Hospital nursing school and became a Registered Nurse.
Ida and Walt (Jerry for those of you in Minnesota) were married on September 5, 1959. They started out in St. Paul, Minnesota where their four children were born: Mark, Carol, Pete and Susan. They decided they needed adventure and moved to Belgium in 1971. Moving to new places was the norm and included Clinton, New Jersey; Dexter, Michigan; and Santa Cruz California. Through their moves Ida formed an expansive network of close friends that she retained throughout her life.
Always up for an adventure, Walt retired in 1994 and they spent four years traveling in their fifth wheel. This gave them the opportunity to see all 49 states and much of Canada, enjoying the outdoors and visiting their many friends and family around the country. Following their travels they settled down in the mountains of Colorado and then moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado in 2008.
Ida and Walt were the perfect role models for a happy and successful marriage and enjoyed seeing each of their kids marry wonderful spouses. Mark & Kym, Pete & Jenn, Carol & John and Susan & Scott.
Grandchildren were a large part of her life. She was blessed with nine wonderful grandchildren – Greg, Jordan, Alice, Meghan, Zoe, Andrew, Tia, Devin and Hayden. She enjoyed spending time with all of them and they will always cherish the memories of time spent with her.
Friends and Family were extremely important to Ida and she truly enjoyed spending time with them whenever possible. Ida also loved to travel with Walt and enjoyed their many trips including their RV life, European river cruises, Mexico, South America, and even a cruise around the Americas from Rio to San Francisco just two years ago in addition to travel and spending time with friends, Ida enjoyed playing bridge with friends, going to plays and shows and watching her Michigan Wolverines football team play.
A private family celebration of Ida’s life will be held in June where her ashes will be spread overlooking the Collegiate Mountains, a view she thoroughly loved. We ask all of those who were a part of Ida’s life to celebrate her in a way that touches your heart. Take a walk, plant a tree, sing a song, share a memory or story of her.
In lieu of gifts we ask that donations be made to United Way or National Parks Foundation, both of which were important to Ida.
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