Eleanor Alma "Elie" Pratt

1933 - 2018

Eleanor "Elie" Pratt, 84, passed away on Friday, May 4, 2018 at Pine Ridge Alzheimer's Special Care Facility in Spokane Valley, WA. She was born on December 15, 1933 in Chicago, IL to Claude and Alma (Mattes) Hale. She grew up in Chicago and Omaha, NE and graduated from Benson High School. Elie met Delbert Raymond Pratt on a blind date and married him seven months later on July 3, 1952 in Omaha. July 3rd, 2018 will mark their 66th wedding anniversary. Elie started her career as a stay at home mother, raising three boys as Delbert was a member of the Air Force. During Delbert's time in the Air Force, Elie moved the kids from one station to another, building a home for the family. In 1952 they lived in Omaha and Council Bluffs, NE; in 1954 they were stationed in Wiesbaden, Germany; in 1958 they were in Las Vegas, NV; in 1962 they were in Fargo, ND; in 1967, they were in Bermuda. Delbert received orders to Da Nang, Vietnam but they were rescinded because his brother, Willie, died in WWII. Delbert retired on October 1, 1969 and they moved the family to Denver, CO. Elie was a "Martha Stewart" on steroids type of mom, running the household (including the finances), cooking all of the meals from scratch, decorating for the holidays (including baking) and helping her boys with schoolwork. Once in Denver, Elie started a part-time job as a check casher at Money Mart, Insure-a-Check Company. Over the next decade, she worked with the President of the company and his family to build the company from a single store front into a multi-state corporation with over 70 locations across five states. She early on became their Vice President for Human Resources. Once the CEO of Money Mart decided to sell the company to Cash Express, Elie decided to do something different so she decided to get a real estate license. She started as a realtor, selling for a local Century 21 franchise and quickly bought her own franchise, eventually moving to become an independent realtor/broker, building her own company - Elie Pratt Real Estate. She finally decided to close shop just a few years ago. Elie's hobbies included singing in her church choir and other church activities, gardening and traveling. She was a member of Harvey Park Christian Church. Elie is survived by her sons, Gregory R. Pratt of Denver, CO and Gary L. Pratt of Manhattan, KS; granddaughters, Nyssa M. Strom, Robyn S. Strom and Kirstyn L. Pratt all of Colorado; siblings, Richard Hale of Lincoln, NE, Laurie Swift of Aiken, SC and David Hale of Ottawa, KS. She was preceded in death by her husband, Delbert Ray Pratt; son, Randall William Pratt; and sisters, Arlene Arnold (Hale) and Janet Hammell (Hale). A memorial service will be held on Friday, May 18, 2018 at 3pm at Harvey Park Christian Church, 3401 S. Lowell Blvd., Denver, CO 80236. She will be laid to rest with Delbert in a private service at Ft. Logan National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Harvey Park Christian Church.