Albert I. Ossinger

Ossinger, Albert I.

It is with much sadness we announce the death of Albert I. Ossinger, beloved husband, father, grandfather, colleague and friend. Al passed peacefully at the age of 90 on Saturday, November 19, 2022, surrounded by family.

Al loved the mountains, from his early days growing up in West Seattle, Washington, where he hiked as a Boy Scout on the Olympic Peninsula and attended West Seattle High School. He lived most of his life in Colorado, residing in Lakewood for decades, and climbed all of Colorado's fifty-four 14,000-foot peaks at least three times. As a long-time member of the Colorado Mountain Club and president in 1986, Al introduced many to the joy of hiking-and to his notorious puns. A chemist for 35 years at the Environmental Protection Agency, he organized hikes for his co-workers. He also led several
Sierra Club trips in Colorado and Wyoming.

Al graduated from Stanford University, received a master's degree from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and did additional research at the University of Denver. While in the Army he learned Russian and was stationed on St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, monitoring aerial communications. He taught
chemistry and Russian for several years at Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford, and chemistry at Adams State University in Alamosa, Colorado. His first U.S. Government job was at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal. He was a 62-year member of the American Chemical Society, a multi-year volunteer at the local elementary school and took pride in the flowers, especially dahlias and iris, that he grew in his backyard garden. He was a fan of the Denver Broncos and Stanford sports, and especially liked reading history and biographies. The Colorado Mountain Club Foundation awards an Al Ossinger Fellowship annually in honor of his work at the Foundation, including as longtime chair of the Academic Fellowship Committee. In 2003 Al received a special honor for his substantial effort in CMC activities resulting cumulatively in significant improvement in the Club.

This friendly, gentle, pun-loving mountain man is survived by his wife Dotty and daughter Joanna, son-in-law Dan, grandchildren Victoria and James, sister Jeannie, and extended family on both the West and East Coasts. A celebration of Al's life will be held at a future date. The family requests that any donations in his memory be made to the Colorado Mountain Club or the Colorado Mountain Club Foundation, both located in Golden, Colorado.