Tiffany Haley Obituary

Haley
TIFFANY JEAN HALEY
December 11, 1977 August 8, 2019
Like ripples from a stone tossed into a pond, her influence will go on for generations.
Tiffany Jean Haley has leapt into the arms of Jesus. She accomplished more in her 41 years than most do in 82.
Born in Colorado Springs to Tim and Nancy Haley, she graduated from Palmer High School in 1996, earned a B.A. from the University of Colorado-Boulder and a Master's Degree from Loyola, Marymount. Volunteering over 1,000 hours at Memorial Hospital, primarily in the NICU, the hospital nominated and selected her to carry the 1996 U.S Olympic Torch. Tiffany earned her Girl Scout Gold Award by sewing sound and light-reducing blankets to cover the babies in the NICU.
Teach for America assigned her to middle school science classes in Compton, CA. She then taught in Middletown, CT and earned a second master's degree. She was named Middle School Science Teacher of the Year in Connecticut. Returning to Colorado Springs, she instructed both engineering and astronomy classes at Air Academy High School. She embraced further studies (usually STEM), excelling as a teacher of Honor classes in Introduction to Engineering Design, Digital Electronics, Civil Engineering and Architecture, and Aerospace Engineering, as well as astronomy. A hands-on teacher, her enthusiasm led students on field trips to such places as construction sites, Air Force Academy wind tunnel, student-built rocket launchings, Space Symposium and Parade of Homes. She engaged her students with multiple computer projects like designing homes and castles, as well as creating gingerbread houses, electrical circuit projects, and 3D printer holiday ornaments.
Most recently, she was awarded the Air Force Association Chapter Teacher of the Year.
Her love of all things astronomy found her at total solar eclipses in Hawaii, the Caribbean, and Nebraska. She attended NASA shuttle and other launchings. Earning her own money to go to Space Camp as a teenager, she again returned as an adult. Tiffany was hand-picked to be one of 29 international teacher liaisons with the Space Foundation. Last year, she was honored to attended the Abrams Teacher Professional Development program, one of 25 teachers selected world-wide. The Space Symposium was a highlight for her every year, embracing everything she could learn and share with her students. She was asked to present a teacher lesson plan there in 2018.
Tiffany loved travel and visited 6 continents on multiple occasions (Antarctica was on her bucket list). With Earthwatch, she aided ecological studies of Sea Otters in Alaska, herbaceous populations (especially elephants) in South Africa, and Sea Turtles in Australia. She hiked, motorcycled and helicoptered Ayers Rock, bungee jumped in the Australian Blue Mountains, and sky-dived in Connecticut. Tiffany took a grueling hike in the Andes Mountains of Peru to climb Machu Picchu and Chachapoya. She explored the Great Wall of China. An avid cruiser on Royal Caribbean, she made multiple Eurasian trips, especially loving Barcelona, Rome, Mt Vesuvius, Venice, Croatia, and Ephesus, Turkey. She visited England and France repeatedly, even living and learning to cook with a French family. A devout vegetarian, Tiffany expanded the palates of many with her outstanding recipes and magnificently decorated cakes. All adventures were recorded in amazingly crafted scrapbooks.
Tiffany appreciated the fine arts, especially theatre, here as well as Denver, L.A., NY and abroad, collecting masks and artwork wherever she travelled. She was skilled in painting, stained glass and woodworking. Tiffany made beautiful quilts for her nephew and niece and cherished each moment she spent with them. Every child should have an Auntie like Tiffany. She appreciated health, wellness and natural beauty, which led her to become an ambitions Mary Kay consultant. Tiffany was an active member of P.E.O. Chapter EA, Colorado and loved her sisters, devoting much of her time to them and serving as Treasurer. She loved to dance, first ballet (toe) and later ballroom dancing.
Raised and baptized at First Christian Church with her family in Colorado Springs, Tiffany later chose Rock Family Church to be her new sanctuary when she moved back to Colorado. Active with the women's programs, prayer groups, and the Christmas Elf project, she was also a key operator of the sound system team on Sunday mornings.
Tiffany is survived by her parents Tim and Nancy Haley, sister Julie Lucinda Haley Wiebers (Bill), nephew and niece Billy and Sutton and her precious 31/2 pound teacup poodle Dixie.
Donations for an Air Academy High (AAH) engineering and science scholarship are being collected on GoFundMe. P.E.O. donations should be marked for STAR Scholarships. Tiffany also adored the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, especially the giraffes and the Meer Cats, and was an active supporter.
Her Celebration of Life and reception will be Saturday, August 24, 10:30 a.m. at Rock Family Church, 4005 Lee Vance Drive, COS 80918 followed by a graveside service at 2:30 p.m., Evergreen Cemetery, 1005 Hancock Expressway 80903.
Many thanks go to the fabulous medical team at Memorial Central ICU. We also wish to thank the relatives and friends, especially cousins Dyanna Haley-Rezac and Mary Niemeyer, who have all carried us through Tiffany's final destination.