Walter Joseph Zender

Joe, as he preferred to be called, grew up in a small Iowa town, one of a family of six with a large extended family nearby. He told stories of his childhood that included shooting squirrels for dinner and canning food from the family's many gardens to survive the winters. Despite the difficult circumstances, all four of the children graduated from college, most of them earning graduate degrees. Joe earned money for college working in construction and playing semi-pro baseball. He received his BA and MA degrees in theatre from the Iowa State Teacher's College, now the University of Northern Iowa, in Cedar Falls, Iowa. His career was in technical theatre -- teaching, designing and building sets, lighting and sound design for performances and performance spaces. He taught in Iowa, Montana and Minnesota before arriving in Boulder as a set designer for the Shakespeare Festival prior to joining the theatre department at the University of Colorado Boulder. After leaving CU he spent several years consulting, and in partnership with a sound engineer, designed performance spaces. He continued to teach and design sets, teaching a class at Fairview High School and eventually joining the Metro State faculty before retiring. A highly visual person, Joe best expressed himself through the things he created: homes, dishes, furniture, picture frames, poems, drawings and paintings. photos, murals, calendars, and theatre sets and props. He was forever building and creating things. In order to take 4 young children on long camping trips in the family station wagon he designed and built a folding kitchen, a car-top carrier, cots, personalized toy boxes and laundry bags. Joe fought a brave and dignified fight against Alzheimer's disease for several years before his passing. As his memory challenges increased he continued to enjoy photography, especially nature and landscape images. He enjoyed music. Opera, and music from classic musicals such as "Man of La Mancha" and "Fiddler on the Roof," was once part of his family's Sunday routine. Joe is survived by Jo Ann, his wife of 60 years; their children Julie, Jaime (Jill), Jennifer (Larry), and Janaan (Jenny); his sister Carole (Jim); grandchildren Aaron (Lieschen), Nathan (Chelsea), Morgan, Chelsea, Kelly, Colin, Mia and Sean; great-grandchild Emerson; and legions of students, all who celebrate his impact on their lives.