Margaret Wilson Carpenter

Margaret Carpenter - mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, teacher, administrator, council member, mayor, friend, and follower of Jesus - died November 24, 2017 on her 87th birthday. She will be missed by her family, her friends, her church, and her community. Margaret was born the youngest of six children to George and Zoe May Wilson in Danielson, Connecticut. She attended Ottawa University in Ottawa, Kansas, where she graduated with a B.A. in education, and met and married Jim Carpenter. They moved to Indianapolis, Indiana in 1952, and then to Thornton, Colorado in 1956. She taught third grade at Bertha Heid Elementary in Thornton, and earned her M.A. in education in 1962 from Colorado State College and her Ed.D. in 1971 from the (by-then renamed) University of Northern Colorado. She became an administrator in Adams County School District No. 1 in 1970, and retired in 1988 as an Assistant Superintendant for the district. From 1973 to 2000, she served in Thornton city government, first for six years as a council member, and then for 20 years as mayor. During her time as mayor, Thornton grew into a full service community with thriving residential and commercial sectors, and that growth continues through this day. She served in various capacities in metropolitan, regional, state-wide and national concerns throughout her tenure in Thornton government, including the Colorado Municipal League, the National League of Cities, the Colorado Front Range Project, the Colorado Water Roundtable, and the Denver Regional Council of Governments. She was actively involved in her local community, as a member of Crossroads Church from 1963 until her death, as a member and President of the Thornton-Northglenn Rotary Club, and as a Board member of and advocate for Community Reach. She loved reading, travel, and her family, and she became devoted to golf in her retirement, as the world’s straightest - and shortest distance - left-handed golfer. She is survived by her four children: Jim Carpenter and his wife Katy of Boulder, John Carpenter and his wife Anita of Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada, Burton Carpenter of Thornton, and Jackie Slade of Parker; as well as seven grandchildren and nineteen great-grandchildren. She has left them with great memories, lots of love, and a heritage of the wisdom of her character - an inquiring mind, a strong drive to do the task well, and a vision to see what can be. A memorial service will be held at Crossroads Church, Northglenn campus, 10451 Huron St., at 2:30 p.m. on December 9, 2017. In lieu of flowers,memorial contributions be made in Margaret's honor to: Community Reach Center c/o Evan Narotsky 1870 West 122nd Avenue Westminster, CO 80234 -or- Colorado Homeless Families P.O. Box 740130 Arvada, CO 80006 http://coloradohomelessfamilies.org/donate/ -or- YFC—Juvenile Justice Ministries Youth For Christ USA P.O. Box 4478 Englewood, CO 80155 http://www.yfc.net/give