In Memoriam

Ben Freeman ’19

From Left: CA Lower School art teacher Angela Hottinger and Margarita Diaz ’19

From Left: 2020 alumni CJ Romine, Jasmine Moore, Chris Wachuta attended the 2022 Commencement at CA.

Alumni and friends attended the Giant Relay Day Happy Hour Party. From Left: Jakob Prichard, Hannah Krueger ’21, Sara Musani ’21.

Cindy Phelps Adamson ’84

Cindy Adamson passed away September 27, 2021. She was born in Rock Springs, Wyo. on August 29, 1966, to Gerald Phelps and Corlis Genetti Phelps. She grew up in Colorado and played volleyball for Colorado Academy. Cindy had a big heart. She was a wonderful mother and loved her children and grandchildren more than anything. Her family remembers, “Cindy was the best gift giver, as loyal as they come, and the ‘class clown.’ There was no one like her, and she will be truly missed. Cindy loved her job, as anyone lucky enough to have her as their therapist could tell you. She was the best around.”

Cindy is survived by her three children, Kacie, Taylor, and Justin; five grandchildren; her mother Corlis Phelps; and sister Teresa Brandin Phelps.

Jonathan David Bush ’77

BY GEOFF BUSH ’75

With heavy hearts, we mourn the passing of Jonathan David Bush. On May 28, 2022, Jonathan passed due to a sudden illness. His family and his many friends will dearly miss him. In 1960, Arthur and Ruth Bush began construction on a home in Bow Mar and settled there to raise their two boys, Geoffrey and Jonathan. Jonathan was enrolled at Colorado Academy in Grade Two, the beginning of a lifelong relationship. At CA, he was active in sports and drama and graduated with the Class of 1977. He enrolled at Bowdoin College and graduated in 1981, after which he returned to Denver and began a long and productive career in commercial real estate development. He started at Coldwell Banker Commercial, followed by several years at Lowe Enterprises, during which Jonathan advanced his skills in commercial development. Jonathan and Alice Jackson married in 1994, and after living briefly in the Washington Park area, they returned to Bow Mar in the fall of 2000 to raise their family. Jonathan loved his family and was a devoted father. He was active in the Bow Mar community and at Colorado Academy, where both his children attended school. Jonathan served as a trustee on CA’s Board from 2003 to 2009.

Wanting to establish his own brand, Jonathan, along with his partner Steve Kurtz, formed Littleton Capital Partners LLC in 2004. For the next 18 years, Jonathan pursued his vision of commercial development in Denver. During that time, his company completed 22 projects, along with two more currently in progress in the Denver Metro Area, using his unique approach to mixed-use and redevelopment. Jonathan’s creative approach to development included a number of projects that incorporated murals by local artists. He commissioned over a dozen of them as part of LCP Development projects. Jonathan’s passion for Denver and its many varied communities will be his legacy for many years to come. Jonathan loved Colorado and the access to the outdoors afforded by living in Denver. Throughout his life, he spent

Cindy Phelps Adamson ’84 as pictured in the 1984 Telesis

Jonathan Bush ’77

much of his time hiking, camping, and skiing in the Colorado Rockies with his family. He had just begun the next chapter in his life with Emie Watters in their new home.

Jonathan is survived by son Liam Bush ’15, daughter Addie Bush ’16 (both of Denver), and brother Geoffrey Bush ’75 of California. Instead of flowers, the family suggests a donation in Jonathan’s memory to either of two causes. Support Jonathan’s love of the Colorado outdoors through cpw.state. co.us/aboutus/Pages/donate.aspx. Support Jonathan’s passion for a vibrant Denver and its street art through rinoartdistrict.org/ support/donate-and-volunteer.

Thomas DeMouth ’72

BY MELANIE DEMOUTH BALL ’74

Tom DeMouth passed away on December 22, 2021, at the age of 67. Tom is survived by his sister Melanie DeMouth Ball ’74 and brother James DeMouth ’75. With a lifetime of breathing complications, Tom endured a long illness while remaining incredibly strong and kind. He retired from his career at Jefferson County Human Services in February 2021. Tom actively served in the U.S. Navy, both foreign and at sea, for three and one-half years of his four-year duty. Tom was insightful, brave, devoted, and respected and loved by his family, colleagues, care team, associates, and neighbors. He was always ready to brighten everyone’s day with a joke or supportive care. He is buried at Ft. Logan National Cemetery in Denver, Colo.

Tom DeMouth ’72 as pictured in the 1972 Telesis Marc Earnhardt ’69 as pictured in the 1969 Telesis

Marc Earnhardt ’69

BY DAVID EARNHARDT ’67

Marc Earnhardt passed away on November 12, 2021, at the age of 70, due to COVID-19 and other health compromises. A private observance was held.

Marc was complex and highly intelligent. He had many interests and pursued them vigorously and single-mindedly. I still remember when he would regularly ski off ten-foot-tall boulders at a local ski resort. I recall how he described his early years at CA, when he and fifteen other boys would play tackle football during lunch break on the soccer field behind the old gym and then return to class, to the annoyance of teachers, with grass and mud stains on their knees, and torn collars and elbows of their shirtsleeves. He was also one of the best running backs on the Varsity Football Team and a fast runner, participating in the 440 and 100yard dash in track. Marc had considerable musical talent, playing saxophone in CA’s big band, The Preps. Marc had a great sense of humor and often biting sarcasm, which I’m sure his classmates recall. Like several of them, he was a prankster at times. Marc was thoughtful, humanistic, and had progressive and imaginative ideas; education was also important to him. I fondly recall how, in Fifth Grade, after he’d expressed interest in wanting to attend a midwestern university, a newspaper in that state interviewed him, with a photo of him beaming, as he shook hands with the university president. In fact, he could have gone to any school he wanted to, being one of the students who had attended CA for all 12 years. After graduation, Marc showed himself to be a talented sous-chef, a capacity in which he worked for several years. However, he loved number-crunching even more than food, so he returned to school, got a BA in Economics, and worked as a financial analyst for Utah’s state health department for 28 years, before retiring to Nevada. Marc had artistic talents, too, which he didn’t talk about until he was in his late sixties, when he revealed that he’d painted some excellent landscapes with oils and also crafted mosaics. How often we discover wonderful aspects about someone after he has passed from this Earth.

Stafford Grey ’74

BY CHUCK SAWYER ’74

Hearing of Stafford’s death was a shock with subsequent sadness. Stafford attended Lower, Middle, and Upper School at CA. I knew Stafford in pre-school. We all managed to find our way

Stafford Grey ’74

through the adolescent drama and finish high school, to our parents’ surprise. Stafford was a sweet soul. He managed to stay out of trouble, despite the misbehavior of many of his classmates. He lived to do the right thing, and he was loved by all who knew him. Stafford loved sports and was a gifted athlete while at CA. He was a great soccer and lacrosse player. He was the co-captain of CA’s State Championship Lacrosse Team and was selected as an AllState midfielder in his Senior year. Stafford was also elected King of the Prom during his Senior year. Upon graduation from CU-Boulder, he excelled in the sales world. His honest personality could sell anything to anybody. Stafford gave back to CA by volunteering to coach CA’s Ninth Grade Lacrosse Team.

Stafford supplemented his sales career by becoming a ski instructor in Aspen. Who wouldn’t want that gig? (In 2018, Stafford received the Bob Beattie Award from the Aspen Valley Ski Club for his outstanding dedication to the Base Camp program over a span of several years.) In his thirties, Stafford started competing in marathons and triathlons. Boy, could he ever run! Participation in these extreme athletic events lasted well into his 60s. Finally, Stafford was a die-hard fan of the CU Buffs and Denver Broncos. You could pretty much find him at every game. While I have many memories of CA, my fondest are memories of being with Stafford. We’ll all miss him greatly.

Owen Locke ’67 Tom Lee

Owen Earl Locke ’67

Owen Locke passed away unexpectedly on April 29, 2022 after a brief illness. He was a fifth-generation Denver native, born on January 6, 1949 to Cynthia Bartels Locke and Andrew Owen Locke. Owen and his sister Martha Locke Weiss (wife of Warner Weiss ’61) grew up in the Denver Country Club neighborhood and loved riding bikes, playing golf, playing cards with their parents at the club, and causing all sorts of mischief with neighborhood friends. Owen attended Colorado Academy as a day student, after Dora Moore and Graland. A gifted athlete, he led the football, basketball, golf, and lacrosse teams to numerous victories. CA is where he made countless close, lifelong friends. He enjoyed visiting the CA campus, catching up with classmates, and remembering pranks and favorite teachers.

Following graduation from Lake Forest College in Illinois, Owen returned to his beloved Colorado, where he met CU student Debby Cook. The couple married on February 17, 1973 and filled their home with unconditional love, laughter, and a dry sense of humor. While Owen enjoyed a long career in commercial real estate lending and mortgage banking, he was an entrepreneur at heart, inventing many contraptions, including his infamous potato launcher. His sense of responsibility, commitment, and work ethic were values Owen lived by. Accomplished in many sports, Owen’s favorite pastime was flying fishing, a passion he shared with his family at every opportunity. He loved being in the mountains and was an avid reader. Owen enjoyed researching his family’s history in Colorado and sharing what he learned with his children and grandchildren. Friends and family will miss Owen’s twinkling blue eyes, huge smile, kind soul, charming wit, and quick sense of humor. Owen is survived by Debby, his wife of almost 50 years; children Hilary and Owen; four grandchildren; and his dog Fritzie. A memorial service was held on June 5, 2022. Memorial donations may be made to Geneva Glen Camp, PO Box 248, Indian Hills, CO; St. Anne’s Episcopal School, 2701 S. York St., Denver, CO 80210; Anglers of Honor, anglersofhonor.org; and Project Healing Waters, projecthealingwaters.org.

Tom Lee

Teacher and Assistant Headmaster (CA 1960-1971)

Born in Bedford, Ind. on February 26, 1924, Tom Lee died on December 18, 2021 at the age of 97 in Boise, Idaho. He had an amazing life as an educator, musician, author, and devoted Christian. During World War II, Tom was injured in the Battle of the Bulge and received the Purple Heart. To read more about Tom, go to news. coloradoacademy.org, Alumni Newsletter.