Julia Allison (McNall) Branan

Beautiful, beloved wife, adored mother and gracious friend, Julia Allison (McNall) Branan, of San Diego, CA and Boulder, CO, passed away peacefully on June 7th, 2022, following a courageous battle with multiple myeloma. She was preceded in death by her mother, Ann Strobel McNall, and her father, Rear Admiral Phillip Freeman McNall. She is survived by her husband, William Jennings Branan III, and their son, William Jennings Branan IV (Will), her brother and his wife, Michael & Christine McNall, and her sister and her husband, Jane & Jon Maier, their children, Chase, Elise, Blaze and Lila, and her many friends, whom she loved dearly. Julie was born on May 2nd, 1962 and lived all over the country as part of a Navy family. She was a graduate of San Diego State University, where she was a member of the Kappa Alpha Theta women's fraternity and majored in Finance.

Julie was a career financial executive, working first in banking for the OCC and later in real estate development in California before joining Vail Resorts as a Senior Director of Finance in Colorado. There she oversaw the finances of a billion-dollar real estate development portfolio and led Vail's financial transition to new business models. Later in her career she became a consultant and Chief Financial Officer, but she was most proud of her work as a force for organizational change. Julie had an infectious laugh and a way of getting people to see things from her perspective that brought her remarkable success as an executive and won her accolades and loyalty from her peers and staff.

In her personal life, she gave freely of her time to her community and friends, and was active in the Junior League of San Diego, serving as Vice President, and in charities both in San Diego and Boulder. She was particularly sought after as a mentor to women executives and was one of the founding members of Kappa Alpha Theta's mentoring program.

Julie was also proud of her son's accomplishments, as the mother of an Eagle Scout and competitive baseball and golf mom and was overjoyed to be able to see him graduate cum laude from Wake Forest University, following her with a degree in Finance. She was a role model to her nieces, Marla, Elise, and Lila, providing a blueprint to them of what a strong woman can do. She loved her "boys" - nephews Chase, Davis, and Blaze, always interested to hear of their adventures. She spent many hours on the golf course as a player and fan, loved to ski, was an accomplished tennis and squash player, and called herself a "water girl" - most at home sailing, boating, or relaxing on the beach in Del Mar or Coronado.

A Celebration of Life is scheduled for October 1st. In lieu of flowers or other donations, the family requests that any honoraria or contributions in her name be made to the "Julia McNall Branan Memorial Educational Scholarship Endowment" of the Kappa Alpha Theta Foundation, or to the CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) program, the national charity of both Theta and the Junior League.

In her family's tradition, we wish her "Fair Winds and Following Seas".