E. Lavenia Hitchcock

Born Esther Lavenia Fansler in Vera, Oklahoma, Lavenia was one of ten siblings and the oldest of three daughters. There had been an older sister, but she died shortly after birth.

Having grown up on a farm and being the wife of a farmer/rancher during the "Dust-Bowl" days, she learned all about hard work and appreciating a job well done by the end of the day. There were no such things as an indoor bathroom or running water in their homes for many years. She canned and froze fruits and vegetables from her garden and meat from their own pigs and cattle, and deer and elk that her hunter husband brought home. She killed, plucked, cut up and fried hundreds of chickens and rabbits. She sewed dresses and shirts for her family from flour and feed sacks for many years.

She was a wonderful cook. Her husband, Glenn, always said, "Give her an egg and a cup of flour and she could turn out a meal for 8-10 people."

Lavenia attended grade school in Ordway, Colorado and high school in Tructon, Colorado. When she started high school, she met Glenn Hitchcock. She was always a good judge of people and said that she knew when she saw him that he was a good one. Once their eyes first met, there was no turning back their hearts for anyone else – it was love at first sight, and that love remained strong and true until the very end of their time together on this old earth.

Lavenia and Glenn were married by a Justice of the Peace on April 15, 1932, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. They had three children, all treasured within their hearts. Glenn Cecil, Jr. was their first-born, Mavis Idell their second, and Ellen Kay was third.

Glenn and Lavenia lived and worked on farms and ranches throughout most of their younger years.

After they moved from the ranch to Littleton in 1952, Lavenia worked as a cook in the Littleton school kitchens for 19 years.

Lavenia has been a member of Valley View Christian Church since 1991. Prior to that, she was a member of First Christian Church of Englewood (now Englewood Bible Church) from 1950 to 1991, where she served faithfully in the capacity deaconess for many years. She also sewed literally hundreds of lap-robe quilts and neck pillows while working with the ladies' group. She counted it a privilege to serve her Lord in these capacities.

Before moving from Elbert, Colorado, to a ranch near Sedalia, Lavenia and her family were members of the Elbert Christian Church.

Lavenia is survived by her two daughters, Mavis and Kay, and two grandsons, Rich and Dylan. She also is survived by one sister, Marie, and one brother, Harmon.

Sadly, Cecil preceded the rest of the family in death in 1953, a loss deeply felt by Lavenia and Glenn and a hurt that never left the hearts of all the family.

Lavenia will be deeply missed by her family, relatives and host of friends. She was a kindhearted and loving woman and we were blessed to have her in our lives for such a long time.

Memorial Services, Thursday 10:00 AM at the Valley View Christian Church, Highway 85 and Titan Rd., Littleton, CO.

Private Family Inurnment, Littleton Cemetery.

Those who wish may make memorial gifts to the Gideon Bible Ministry or to a charity of your choice, in memory of E. Lavenia Hitchcock.