Obituary for Mary Kay Rachwalski
Mary Kay Rachwalski, 90, of Silverthorne, Colorado, passed away April 24, 2023, with her four children by her side at St. Anthony’s Summit Medical Center.
She was born to parents Ernest & Katherine Barber in 1933 in Ottawa, Illinois.
Mary Kay graduated from Illinois State with a degree in Education and taught in Palatine, Illinois.
She married Ray Rachwalski in 1956 and they moved to Colorado in 1960. She taught and was a counselor in Denver Public Schools for over 30 years.
Mary Kay was married to Ray until his passing in 1996. She retired the following year and moved to Silverthorne, Colorado and began her active lifestyle.
She was an avid biker, skier, hiker, walker, snowshoer, runner, and traveler.
Her hobbies included knitting, book clubs, Dominos, having coffee with friends across Summit County and happy hour.
She loved her neighbors, her house, and looking out her living room window at Buffalo Mountain.
Over the years she volunteered at NRO, CASA, Sports Committee for the town of Silverthorne, and she also worked at Keystone Ski Resort for several years.
She loved talking to people, including her friends, as well as people she had just met. It was impossible for her to go anywhere without meeting her “new bestest friend”.
Her traveling highlights include summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro in 2012 and, at that time, was the oldest female to achieve that incredible feat. Another amazing accomplishment of hers was hiking to the base camp at Mt. Everest. She walked across England and America, hiked the Dolomites, in New Zealand and in Canada. There are too many to list but suffice it to say she had awe-inspiring adventures on every continent except Antarctica.
She ran the Chicago Marathon, New York Marathon and ran in countless races across the US, from California to Florida. She has run in the Bolder Boulder every year since 1986.
Mary Kay was an inspiration to us all; had a kind and thoughtful soul and will be dearly missed and remembered by the many whose lives she touched. Among those are her friends she loved spending time with, in her knitting groups, Dominos groups, book clubs, potlucks and neighborhood parties.
She adored her grandchildren and loved spending time with them. She cherished the many adventures she had with them like camping, hiking, skiing, and traveling the world with them on special occasions.
She is preceded in death by her husband Ray, and her brother Robert. She is survived by her four children Rae Ann, Adam, Cat, Joe (Kim) and grandchildren Cassie and Kyle, her sister Kathy, niece Bridget (Andy) and brother Ernie (Claudette), nephews Ernie Jr. (Kristine) and Michael. She is also leaving behind hundreds of good friends and relatives who enriched and shared her life with.
In lieu of flowers the family would like you to consider a donation to the following charity: Smart Bellies, whose mission is “to reduce childhood hunger and increase access to healthy food options to students in Summit and Lake Counties.” Donations can be made using the following link: www.smartbellies.org/donate.
Or if you are so inclined, the family would like you to also consider sending a “Thank You” note to the excellent doctors and care givers at the Patient Care Unit (North Wing) at St. Anthony’s Summit Medical Center who treated her with so much kindness and compassion and made sure she was always comfortable. They also took great care of us while we were staying in her room and made sure we always had a care cart with snacks, coffee, tea, and gave us blankets, recliners, friendship, support, and compassion when we really needed it. They were all wonderful and were available for anything else we needed or asked for.
A Celebration of Life Open House will be held Sunday May 21st from noon to 3:00 pm at the VUE Rooftop Restaurant in the Homewood Suites, 122 Lake Dillon Drive, Dillon, CO 80435. Parking is available onsite, or across the street by the bus stop.
She was born to parents Ernest & Katherine Barber in 1933 in Ottawa, Illinois.
Mary Kay graduated from Illinois State with a degree in Education and taught in Palatine, Illinois.
She married Ray Rachwalski in 1956 and they moved to Colorado in 1960. She taught and was a counselor in Denver Public Schools for over 30 years.
Mary Kay was married to Ray until his passing in 1996. She retired the following year and moved to Silverthorne, Colorado and began her active lifestyle.
She was an avid biker, skier, hiker, walker, snowshoer, runner, and traveler.
Her hobbies included knitting, book clubs, Dominos, having coffee with friends across Summit County and happy hour.
She loved her neighbors, her house, and looking out her living room window at Buffalo Mountain.
Over the years she volunteered at NRO, CASA, Sports Committee for the town of Silverthorne, and she also worked at Keystone Ski Resort for several years.
She loved talking to people, including her friends, as well as people she had just met. It was impossible for her to go anywhere without meeting her “new bestest friend”.
Her traveling highlights include summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro in 2012 and, at that time, was the oldest female to achieve that incredible feat. Another amazing accomplishment of hers was hiking to the base camp at Mt. Everest. She walked across England and America, hiked the Dolomites, in New Zealand and in Canada. There are too many to list but suffice it to say she had awe-inspiring adventures on every continent except Antarctica.
She ran the Chicago Marathon, New York Marathon and ran in countless races across the US, from California to Florida. She has run in the Bolder Boulder every year since 1986.
Mary Kay was an inspiration to us all; had a kind and thoughtful soul and will be dearly missed and remembered by the many whose lives she touched. Among those are her friends she loved spending time with, in her knitting groups, Dominos groups, book clubs, potlucks and neighborhood parties.
She adored her grandchildren and loved spending time with them. She cherished the many adventures she had with them like camping, hiking, skiing, and traveling the world with them on special occasions.
She is preceded in death by her husband Ray, and her brother Robert. She is survived by her four children Rae Ann, Adam, Cat, Joe (Kim) and grandchildren Cassie and Kyle, her sister Kathy, niece Bridget (Andy) and brother Ernie (Claudette), nephews Ernie Jr. (Kristine) and Michael. She is also leaving behind hundreds of good friends and relatives who enriched and shared her life with.
In lieu of flowers the family would like you to consider a donation to the following charity: Smart Bellies, whose mission is “to reduce childhood hunger and increase access to healthy food options to students in Summit and Lake Counties.” Donations can be made using the following link: www.smartbellies.org/donate.
Or if you are so inclined, the family would like you to also consider sending a “Thank You” note to the excellent doctors and care givers at the Patient Care Unit (North Wing) at St. Anthony’s Summit Medical Center who treated her with so much kindness and compassion and made sure she was always comfortable. They also took great care of us while we were staying in her room and made sure we always had a care cart with snacks, coffee, tea, and gave us blankets, recliners, friendship, support, and compassion when we really needed it. They were all wonderful and were available for anything else we needed or asked for.
A Celebration of Life Open House will be held Sunday May 21st from noon to 3:00 pm at the VUE Rooftop Restaurant in the Homewood Suites, 122 Lake Dillon Drive, Dillon, CO 80435. Parking is available onsite, or across the street by the bus stop.