Neiland Olson Obituary

Olson, M.D.
NEILAND ROY OLSON, M.D.
October 25, 1933 July 9, 2019
Neiland Roy Olson, 85, passed away quietly on July 9, 2019. Neil was born on October 25, 1933 in Los Angeles, CA to Elmer Olson and Helen Wolf Olson. He is preceded in death by his wife, Jill Moorshead Olson (2014).
He is survived by his daughter, Christine Hendren (Jim) and son, Neil Courtney Olson (Carol), grandchildren, Jay Hendren, Neil Hendren, Laura Olson Lamar, and Kathryn Olson.
Neil attended La Jolla High school in La Jolla, CA and graduated with the class of 1951. After serving 2 years in the U.S. Army (Private 1st Class, Operating Room Specialist), Neil then graduated from San Diego State University and proceeded to earn his medical degree from Northwestern University in Chicago, IL, graduating with honors.
He met his wife, Jill, at Northwestern, and they married in June 1960. After completing residency at Milwaukee County General Hospital, Neil and Jill moved to Colorado Springs in 1967. There, he set up a successful practice in Otolaryngology with Dr. Jim Carris. For multiple decades, Neil was a board-certified head & neck (maxillofacial) surgeon on the Penrose Hospital staff. In his later years, Neil moved his practice to The Audubon Medical Center, as a partner of that newly established facility. Neil retired full-time from the medical practice in 2010.
Neil enjoyed athletics and grew up surfing the beaches of La Jolla and playing on the SDSU tennis team. Neil lived life with enthusiasm and a sense of adventure. He and Jill enjoyed downhill skiing, scuba diving, fishing, hunting, and flying their Cessna airplane to far-flung locations, in North and Central America and the Caribbean. He and Jill participated in many tennis tournaments, in Colorado Springs over the decades, and also competed in downhill ski racing events. Neil and Jill shared a passion for golf, as well, and were long-time members of the Broadmoor Country Club.
Neil had been suffering from Alzheimer's dementia for several years. After years of declining health, Neil passed in comfort at Morningstar Memory Care in Colorado Springs.
In lieu of flowers, donations are requested to be made in Neil's honor to the Alzheimer's Association (alz.org).