Marjorie Allnutt Brunner

Marjorie Katherine Allnutt Brunner passed away peacefully at her home in Boulder on the evening of May 18th after a long illness and an afternoon with her immediate family. She was born September 28th, 1942, in Greeley, CO, the youngest of the four children of John and Katherine (Samuelson) Allnutt.

Marge grew up in Greeley, becoming a pianist, seamstress, skier, and cheerleader, and graduated from Greeley High School in 1960 at the top of her class academically. After attending Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, MA, for two years, she married her high school sweetheart, Ron Brunner. The couple lived in New Haven, CT, where they had two children, Karen Ann and John, while Ron worked on his degrees at Yale University.

In 1968, Ron joined the faculty of the University of Michigan, and the family moved to Ann Arbor. Marge was very engaged in her children’s lives, attending their recitals, plays, and baseball and football games. She was also a den mother for Cub Scouts, a Girl Scout troop leader and room mother for her children’s classrooms. Marge was the mom who always showed up with homemade treats!

While the children were in elementary school, Marge also worked mornings at the University’s William L. Clements Library specializing in rare books and Americana. She finished her formal education with a B.A. in American Studies from the University of Michigan in 1972.

Marge managed the household smoothly as the family moved temporarily from Ann Arbor to a small town in Germany for a summer, to Brookline, MA, for one year, and to Silver Spring, MD, for another year.

In 1981, Ron joined the faculty of the University of Colorado, and the family moved to Boulder, their home for the next 44 years. This brought them much closer to their extended families in Greeley and to the mountains they enjoyed. Marge worked as a secretary at the CU Law School until her retirement in 1998.

Also in 1998, she became a grandma when Eric was born. Two more grandsons, Tyler and Nolan, followed in 2000. Marge provided day care for them as preschoolers; these “three guy days” as she called them, were a highlight of her life.

Marge could be seen pushing the younger boys in a double stroller while Eric followed on a tricycle, on the way to view the turtles at Varsity Pond, and to swing, climb, and slide at Beach Park, among other stops in the neighborhood. She loved being a grandma!

Marge was known for knitting baby sweaters for her grandchildren, grand nieces and nephews, Ron’s graduate students, and other friends. She kept a list that included the names, dates, and patterns for 46 sweaters, many of which are now being handed down to younger generations. She also sewed Halloween costumes for her children and grandchildren of trick-or-treat age.

Marge was an enthusiastic hostess who knew how to relate to and befriend every guest, including her children’s out-of-state and international friends, Ron’s collaborators and graduate students, and her brother’s CU classmates from the early 1950s. She was also an accomplished chef who searched for new and interesting recipes including elaborate desserts. “Marge’s Diner,” as it became known, was the place to be after CU home football games!

Marge relished outdoor adventures, including canoeing and overnight camping in Michigan, a full-day hike through the crater of Haleakala volcano in Maui, backpacking in Rocky Mountain National Park, a walking-gourmet tour in France’s Dordogne region, bicycling along the Danube from the Munich area to Vienna, and a barge and bicycling tour around the Netherlands.

Marge combined her love of family with her love of travel. The unofficial start in 1977 was a month-long tour of England, Ireland, and Scotland with her mom and sister Nancy. Marge was the designated driver of stick-shift rental cars on what we Americans considered the wrong side of the road. Back in Silver Spring, Ron and the children as junior-high students realized in her absence how much they depended on her.

Later, Marge would research and plan an annual trip to follow Ron’s spring-term classes. Twice this trip included her siblings and their spouses. One was a week-long stay in a 16th century manor house in a small hill town in Tuscany, with a swimming pool, gardener, and housekeeper. The other was a week-long stay based in a farmhouse amidst the lavender fields of Provence.

Marge also planned car trips with Ron to Ireland, England, and Italy. Her first trip to Italy sparked an interest in learning the Italian language through a continuing education class at CU that evolved into a social club. On later trips to Italy, she was able to make conservation, reservations and order meals in Italian.

Marge also booked tours that took her and Ron to Greece, Portugal, Spain, Morocco, and China, and accompanied Ron on working trips in Australia, Norway, Mexico, Canada, and Barrow (now Ukpeagvik) on the North Slope coast of Alaska.

Marge often said, “I just want everyone to be happy.” She helped realize that aspiration to a remarkable degree throughout her life.

Marge was pre-deceased by her parents, brother Jack Allnutt and his wife Nancy, brother Bill Allnutt and his wife Dee, and brother-in-law Esmiel Duran.

Survivors include her sister Nancy Duran of Austin TX, husband Ron of Boulder, daughter Karen Ann (Kirk) Kullby of Lafayette, son John (Rebecca) of Boulder, three grandsons: Eric Brunner of Boulder, Tyler Kullby of Lafayette and Nolan Brunner of San Luis Obispo CA, and 12 nieces and nephews and their families.

Marge’s family would like to thank the team who provided hospice care at home for her during recent years, led by her nurse, Sandee Sanzolone, and including Joy Bird, Pamela Griffin, Dannette Klopf, Robin Burke and Sheila Furth.

A Celebration of Life for Marge will be held at the Macy Chapel of the Allnutt Funeral Service, 6521 W. 20th St., Greeley, CO at 11:00 AM on Saturday, June 28th.