Margaret Colleen Borden

She is survived by her husband Gene Borden, sons Keefe Borden, Gene Borden, and son-in-law Michael Bourda; daughters Janet Bourda, Cindy Borden and daughter-in-law Cheryl Borden. Her surviving sister is Michaela McAuliffe, from Roseburg, Oregon. She has many nieces and nephews and three grandchildren: Anthony Michael Bourda, Anisa Dawn Bourda, and Sarah Borden.

Colleen, as she was known to he friends and family, was born in Rawlins, Wyoming on May 14, 1936. Her mother died in 1941 and she was raised by her father, Leo Keefe, and her Aunt Cora O'Bannon, known as “Sis” to her family.

Her family moved to Los Angeles around 1946, and she graduated from St. Monica’s High School in 1954. Her family later moved to Ventura, California. She worked as an administrative assistant at Humble Oil Co. in 1958, where she met her husband Gene sometime in 1961. Their first date was at the Ice Capades In the Los Angeles Sports Arena. They also saw the Kingston Trio and Dave Brubeck Quartet at a concert at the Hollywood Bowl while dating in Los Angeles.

Gene and Colleen dated about two years before they married on July 3, 1964 at Our Lady of the Assumption in Ventura, California. After a short honeymoon in Santa Barbara, California, the two moved to Houston, where Gene was transferred for work. She was a member of Holy Ghost parish while they lived in Bellaire, Texas for about two years.

In 1966, Gene and Colleen bought a house in Sharpstown, which was the far west edge of Houston at the time. The two settled down to raise a family, where she became an active member of St. Francis de Sales Church. Colleen was a den mother with Pack 80, an active Girl Scouts leader, a soccer mom, a swim mom -- and just about every other type of leader for her four children. For years, she was an active volunteer at the St. Francis de Sales annual bazaar. She was on the parish council for one year and volunteered in the school library.

Gene, Colleen and family took annual vacations to visit her sisters in Tacoma, Washington, visiting most western U.S. states in the process. After her children left the house and Gene retired, the two traveled more extensively, visiting Mexico four times, Venezuela once and Ireland and London once each. Before her health began to fail, Colleen and Gene had visited every U.S. state together except Florida and North Dakota.

She is remembered for her extreme dedication to her family, her faith in God, her skill as a cook and her love for her husband Gene. The two were married 48 years and 11 months.