Brenda Anita Mingo

Brenda Anita Mingo, 59, of Aurora, passed away March 7, 2019.

My mom pretty much was everyone's mom. She not only raised me as a single mother but she also had a hand in raising all my cousins and my two children. She loved beyond love. That's why everyone always turned to her.

My mother was born December 12, 1959, in Gary, Indiana, to Gladys Mingo and Matthew Fortenberry. She was the youngest of four. My mom became a baptized Jehovah's witnesses in June of 1991. She and I got baptized at the same time.

We moved to Colorado the summer of 1994. My mom loved family outings. She bought a Winnebago and lakes and campgrounds became our weekend family vacations. She was definitely the captain of that ship, driving slow through traffic as cars honked at us, and once we arrive to the lake of choice, all we would hear was her yelling out, "man this; set that up; plug in that; who over there; BBQ."

She loved being at one of Jehovah's many amazing creations feeling so small with her family next to her. My mom loved family and friends and movie night. If you didn't have a plate she felt offended. She loved her "Love Boat" reruns and her old movies, watching them as if they just hit the box office.

My mom loved my son and I unlimited, beyond words. He and I are often referred to as spoiled because my mom always made sure we had and never went without. I can never remember a time we didn't have her. A lot of times she'd just pop up unannounced to save our day.

There will never be a question as to if she loved us or how much because rather the words were said or not the way she looked at us said it more times than our ears could bare. It was always funny watching her interact with different ones in the family because each person always got the version of Brenda they needed. The mother, the sister, the aunt, the best friend, or even the stranger, which ever Brenda we got, we always knew it was coming from love. She nagged, she barked, and even bit a few of us, but she always was there to lick our wounds. She was and still is the staple, the glue of this family. All I consistently play over and over in my head is her saying to me, "I'll see you in the new system. Make sure you're there. I promise this will be the last time you will have to take care of me." I hold those words ever so close since she has started her sleep.

Brenda is survived by her daughter, Qiuanna Mingo; father, Matthew Fortenberry; sister, Betty (Kevin) Hendrix; and grandson, Dailon Higgins. She is preceded in death by her mother, Gladis Mingo; sister, Mary Boyde; brother, Paul Mingo; and granddaughter, Abria Mingo.

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