Beverly Ann Seeds

1935 - 2017

Bev Seeds was sweet, thought- ful, loving and caring. She also was brave, inde- pendent and determined, a strong woman who knew what she wanted in life - and death - and never shied from wrestling with life's most challenging questions. On August 6, 2017, Beverly Ann Seeds passed away as she had always lived, on her own terms, eyes wide open, with her family's wellbe- ing foremost in her mind. She was 81. Bev was born October 10, 1935 to Robert R. Seeds, Jr. and Olivia R. Mathews in Phoenix. The family moved to Albuquerque in 1939. As a girl, Bev loved dogs and horses, and she was a voracious reader. She graduated from Highland High School in 1953 and went on to attend the Univer- sity of New Mexico. Raised Episcopalian, she converted to Unitarianism after the birth of her children, and would go on to be a founding member of the Boulder Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in 1979. Bev worked as a secretary for three years to support her family in Chicago before moving to Virginia, where she earned a bachelor's degree from Norfolk State Univer- sity, a historically black liberal-arts school. At a time when such independence was far less common, Bev moved to Boulder in 1974 as a single mother with no job and no home. She took a job as a secretary in the CU Boulder Department of English while working toward her mas- ter's degree, which she earned in 1977. She went on to teach remedial read- ing and first and second grade with the St. Vrain Valley School District over the next two decades. In retirement, Bev continued to give of herself, as a volunteer tutor for adults, in countless roles with her fellowship, as a volun- teer for the local chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness and Compassion & Choices, and more. She was, first and foremost, a loving mother, friend and neighbor. She never stopped reading and learning, and she loved gardening and her dog, Jade. Bev is survived by her children, Marc Esen- wein of Louisville, Steven Esenwein of Longmont and Lori Hoffman of Blooming- ton, Illinois; a brother, Robert Seeds III, of Colorado Springs; a sister, Chelly Evans, of Eagan, Minnesota; two grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 3, at Boulder Valley Uni- tarian Universalist Fellowship (BVUUF), 1241 Ceres Dr. in Lafayette, CO 80026, the Rev. Lydia Ferrante- Roseberry officiating. Please see murphyfun eraldirectors.com. Memorial contribu- tions may be made to BVUUF (bvuuf.org) or NAMI Boulder County, 1333 Iris Ave., Boulder, CO 80304 (namiboulder county.org).