Mary Louise Pelham (Hentges) was born on June 25th, 1948, to Mary and Walter Hentges. Mary grew up in Colorado Springs, CO, the oldest of five daughters. She graduated from St Mary’s Catholic High School in Colorado Springs. She enrolled in college classes at the University of Northern Colorado to study nursing. She met William “Bill” Pelham in Greeley in 1967, then were married on June 15, 1968, in Colorado Springs.
Bill and Mary lived in the Denver metro area, and moved to Broomfield in 1979, where they raised their family.
Bill and Mary were foster parents from about 1970-1996, and ran a receiving home for foster children in Boulder County. They shared their family, home, and love with over 500 foster children. Two of those foster children, Becky and Crystal, were adopted by Bill and Mary.
When not fostering, Mary was a medical assistant, working in various medical offices around the Denver area, while taking classes at Front Range Community College. She later worked in customer service at Dish Network and various companies. Mary retired in 2019, after many years of work and service to others.
Bill and Mary were married for 50 years, until Bill’s passing in 2018. Those years were filled with unending love, care, and complete and total devotion to raising their children and grandchildren, involvement with their church, and serving their community.
Mary passed away on July 25, 2024. She touched and enriched many lives, and was an amazing wife, mother, and a very kind and caring person to everyone she met. She is preceded in death by her parents Walter and Mary Hentges; husband William Pelham; and grandson Alec Henry. She is survived by her sisters Nancy Hall (Kenneth), Charlotte Bonham (Lyle), Jennifer Dawson (James), and Meg Lyons (Will - dec’d); children Joyce Retherford, Debora Pelham, Rebecca “Becky” Toliver (Roy), Daniel Pelham, and Crystal Pelham to-be Mendez (Zachary); grandchildren Amber Lamar, Aidan Retherford, Aaron Stephens, Julian Pelham; and great-grandson Landon Lamar.
In lieu of flowers, all are welcome to make a donation to an organization of their choosing.
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