Louise Leona Armelin

Louise Leona Armelin was born in New Iberia, Louisiana on October 14, 1923. She was the fourth child of Gerard Olivier and Leocade Jacquet-Olivier. She had ten siblings, five brothers: Hurven, Bernard, Murphy, Antoine and Donald; and five sisters: Mildred, Nettie, Junita, Martha and Lilly, who died in infancy.

Following World War II, Louise moved to Denver, Colorado, where she met Cyrus Benjamin Armelin, a veteran of the war. They married on August 3, 1948. The couple enjoyed going to the movies and out to dinner, and frequenting the clubs of Denver's Five Points district, listening to the musicians of the day and dancing late into the night. They had three children, the first of whom was born in 1954. Louise never dated or remarried following her husband's death in 1981, saying, "Cyrus was the only man for me."

Always a hard worker, Louise grew up cutting cane and picking cotton. After moving to Denver, she attended nursing school and became a practical nurse. Later, she and Cyrus purchased a piece of land in Commerce City, Colorado, turning it into a small farm. At that point she stopped working outside the home and dedicated all of her time to her children and the farm.

Devout Catholics, Louise and Cyrus attended church regularly and were active in many Church organizations. They worked hard to send all of their children to Parochial School. Louise prayed endlessly, regularly saying four or five Rosaries every day. She was an incredibly strong woman both spiritually and emotionally and she dealt with many physical adversities throughout her life.

Louise loved to fish. While living in Louisiana, she would take her pole and walk down to the bayou to catch fish for her breakfast in the morning, then catch more fish for dinner. She always grew a garden and was a skilled seamstress, sewing many of her own clothes and clothes for her children.

Louise was a beautiful soul and a loving person. She will be sorely missed by all those who loved her, including her children, Dale, Derk and Derene, and her surviving brother, Donald, and sister, Martha. She is also survived by her two grandchildren, La Crea Dixon and Calvin Riley, Jr., and by her two great-grandchildren, Kyra Ann, daughter of La Crea, and Jayzon, son of Calvin. Louise also leaves many grieving nieces and nephews, one of whom, Sidney Stephens, was like a third son to her.

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