Claribel Conway Obituary

Conway
Claribel Goodwin Conway
November 16, 1913 - January 11, 2018
"Mom told me I was born on a beautiful sunny November day." - Claribel Conway
Claribel (Goodwin) Conway was born November 16, 1913 in Canton, Illinois. It was the year after the sinking of the Titanic. She was the daughter of Minerva and Leo Goodwin. In those days men on horse drawn trucks delivered ice to homes. Leo delivered ice to the home of the state senator where Minerva worked as a housemaid. She caught his eye and they later married.
Claribel was the youngest of four children. Life was not easy in the early 20th Century. One baby died from an ear infection, the other died from a premature birth. Minerva had T.B. and was quarantined to a tent in their back yard. Even though Claribel said they were as poor as church mice, she still enjoyed her early childhood in Canton. She liked telling stories of her mischievous youth. In a third grade play she was given the role of "Naughtiness."
Claribel was 10 years old when she and her mom moved to Denver. It was a popular place for the treatment of T.B. Her father and older brother, Claude, followed them later on. They rented the upper level of a home near East High school. It was a fairly new school at the time! She enjoyed East and participated in different musical groups. The owner of the apartments she lived in took an interest in Claribel. She helped her apply for a scholarship to Denver University. It was offered by the Methodist Church where Claribel taught the Bible to little children. She graduated from East in 1931 and went to D.U. where she majored in English and became a Kappa Delta sorority member.
In 1933 she met James Melvin Conway (Mel) at a fraternity party. Claribel reminisced, "I don't know, we just left our dates and talked and talked." Mel had a wild sense of humor that made her laugh for the next 59 years. He graduated from D.U. with a degree in Business. They were married on December 28, 1933. She and Mel planned a honeymoon at the Broadmoor. The hospitality industry has always taken care of its own which made it possible. It was early Winter 1933, the depth of the Depression. There was just one other couple staying at the hotel and she felt so uncomfortable she made Mel check out and they went to the Antlers!
Mel started out as a bellhop at the old Cosmopolitan Hotel. He later became the manager of the Denver Athletic Club. With the help of an architect, they built their first home on the old Brighton Road in Denver. It was during the Great Depression and times were tough, so to make do, Claribel raised chickens. She often talked about being squeamish wringing a chicken's neck. Since there was no indoor plumbing, they actually had a "pot to pee in."
They raised three girls and one boy. Garland and Jamie were close in age; Mary and Linda came almost a decade later. Setting a nice table and serving a delicious meal was of high importance to Claribel. There were routines established for the dinner hour that gave the family a sense of belonging. It was a gathering place where everyone talked at once and no one listened. It was meant to be fun with phrases from Mel like, "Who's going to say what for whom?" After the prayer, seven family members, which included Minerva, passed the food around in an orderly manner. Claribel was big on table manners!
Mel retired from the D.A.C. in 1968 and they later moved to Colorado Springs. Their retirement years were spent traveling, playing golf and enjoying their grandchildren.
Mel died in 1992. Claribel later moved to The Inn at Garden Plaza, an independent living facility. She made many new friends, playing bridge, dominoes, and poker. Her favorite time was playing Scrabble with her best friend, Pat Michels. Claribel had many friends and was never known to be at a loss for words. She was engaging, smart and never failed in giving her opinion on any subject.
She will be missed and for all of us who were fortunate enough to have had her in our lives, we are all the more enriched.
Claribel is survived by her daughters, Garland Page (Lon-now deceased) of Panama City, Florida; Mary Murphy (John Patrick) of Colorado Springs, CO.; Linda Westmoreland (Mike) of Parker, CO.
Her son, Jamie of Anaheim, California, preceded her in death in 1998. She also has 10 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren.
The clouds were dancing out of Cheyenne Mountain like angels playing on the day she passed away, and it was a sunny day.