John Simons Obituary

Simons
John L.
Simons
February 19, 1944
February 12, 2026

John L. Simons died in his home on the Westside of Colorado Springs on February 12. He was 81 years old.
John was born in Allegan, Michigan to John L. Simons Sr. and Mary Armstrong Simons on February 19, 1944. As a boy John loved to play with his friends along the Kalamazoo River. He also loved basketball and reading.
After graduating from Allegan High School, John attended Hope College in Holland, Michigan where he majored in Political Science and then English. John then went on to the University of Chicago where he attained a doctorate in English. In Chicago John met Janette Frear Simons. They were married on September 14, 1968.
In 1971 the Simonses headed west to Colorado Springs, where John was hired to teach English at Colorado College. Though they would never again live in the Midwest, John's love for the beaches of Western Michigan took John and Frear back to Michigan every summer.
John taught full time at CC from 1971-2017 and continued to teach occasional classes through 2023. He helped to found the film studies program at the college and he was perhaps best known for his course on James Joyce's Ulysses as well as his courses on Western film and film adaptations of Shakespeare. John authored numerous scholarly articles in his time at Colorado College and in 2011 his book on the western films of director Sam Peckinpah was published. John wrote the book, called Peckinpah's Tragic Westerns, in partnership with his lifelong friend Robert Merrill.
Teaching was always John's first love and he particularly enjoyed serving as a mentor for young people both as a professor and as a community member. He was beloved by students and served as a father figure for countless young men on the Westside over the decades.
Throughout his life John was active in the Episcopal Church. He served on the vestries at Grace and St. Stephen's and at the Chapel of our Saviour. He was also an active member of the Round Table men's group, which he always looked forward to. His greatest pleasures though were in spending time with his grandchildren and watching his beloved Denver Nuggets.
John is survived by his wife of 57 years, Frear, his children Daisy Simons Barnard (Morgan), Jack Simons (Amanda), grandchildren Lark Miller, Buck Barnard, Opal Simons, and Annie Simons as well as his sister Mary Lynn Simons, two nieces, two nephews, and their children. He was predeceased by his parents and sister Deborah Simons.
A memorial service will be held at Chapel of Our Saviour Episcopal Church, 8 Fourth St. at 10 AM on Saturday, February 28 with burial in the Memorial Garden at Grace and St. Stephen's Episcopal Church. In lieu of flowers the family suggests donations to Colorado College, Chapel of Our Saviour Episcopal Church, or Pikes Peak Hospice.