Thelma "Boots" Hamm

Thelma Ardell “Boots” Hamm of Golden, Colorado entered eternal life on January 7, 2023, at her daughter’s home, where she had lived for the past two years.

Boots was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on June 4, 1925, to Thomas Harold Hancox and Frances Lucille Black Hancox.  Her early life was shaped by the Great Depression, and her family of three moved constantly throughout the west, following the oil wells that her father drilled.  She lived for a short time with her maternal grandparents on “The Ranch” on the Utah-Wyoming border.  Her family finally settled in Artesia, New Mexico, where she welcomed her precious little sister, Norma Ruth.

She attended school in Artesia, graduating from Artesia High School in 1942.  Immediately after high school, she began nurse’s training at Hotel Dieu School of Nursing in El Paso, Texas.  World War II had started, and student nurses were used to staff the hospitals due to the shortage of medical personnel.  She would attend classes and work with patients for a grueling 12–16-hour day for three years.  She graduated from Hotel Dieu as a Registered Nurse.

Boots returned to Artesia and the love of her life, James Warren Nellis.  Boots and Jimmy were married on September 20, 1946.  The Nellis Family grew to include three daughters, Sharon, Mary Lou, and Rose Ann.

The Nellis Family moved to Denver in 1953.  There were lots of short relocations as they followed the oil fields, just like their parents.  Many adventures were had when moving around Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, and New Mexico.  The one constant in their lives was family.  Family was everything to Boots, and she worked tirelessly to make life a joy for Jimmy and her three girls.

Boots and Jimmy finally had the opportunity to settle and buy a house in 1958.  They lived in Adams County from 1958 until Jimmy’s death in 1965.  Boots and the girls continued to live in their house after Jimmy died and she continued working as a Registered Nurse at Mt. Airy Psychiatric Hospital.  She was, as always, completely dedicated to her family and her profession.

Boots met and married Charles Hamm in 1966.  They had many wonderful adventures together, travelling to Mexico, Hawaii, and Alaska.  They loved their five children and did everything they could to provide a life of fun and adventure for them.  Charlie passed away in 1989, after 23 beautiful years of marriage.

Charlie gave Boots the travel bug.  After his death, she continued to travel to many different destinations around the world.  She would tell us about her adventures when she returned home, observing that a smile translates the same in any language.

Boots met Father Perry McCoy at Holy Trinity Parish, and he set her off on another series of adventures that meant so much to her need to help and give back to those in need.  Father Perry started a mission project for the war-torn country of Kosovo.  He and Boots appealed to a number of organizations and were able to provide thousands of pounds of seeds to replenish the war torn lands.  Boots insisted that they provide some flower seeds as well, so that the people could enjoy some color and the joy that flowers bring.  They took the seeds to Kosovo, met with several organizations that provided relief for the refugees, and made sure that the seeds were distributed to the people who were devastated by the war.  One of the greatest joys of her life was when she returned to Kosovo two years later and saw fields of flowers!  Boots and Father Perry remained close and schemed to give to the less fortunate until his death in 2017.

Boots could never stop giving.  She worked for Volunteer Nurses of America for many years, until she gave up her syringe at 87.  It was never the work that stopped her, but the technology that VNA required that made her throw in the towel.  She just couldn’t get into the computer thing.

The last years of Boots’ life were spent in her little house that she was so proud of.  She loved her house and her pup, Masie, and would spend hours working in her yard or sitting on her patio.  When she could no longer stay alone, God provided once more, and her daughter, Rosey and her husband, Mark, found the perfect house.  Mom spent her last two years living with Rosey and Mark, and was able to have her patio time and a beautiful home away from home.  Those gifts of love can never be repaid, and our entire family is eternally grateful for the gift they gave.

Boots will forever be missed by her two surviving daughters and their husbands, Sharon and Nelson Rubin and Rose and Mark Johnson.  She will also be missed by her stepson, Charles Hamm and his wife Cory.  She was preceded in death by her daughter, Mary, stepdaughter, Valerie, and her two grandsons, Nick and Clint.  She will also be missed by her grandchildren, Tracy, Robby, Meghan (Curtis), Amanda (Ryan), and Paul, and by her great-grandchildren, Jessica, Dominick, Isabella, Chandler and Carter.

A Memorial Mass for Boots will be said on Saturday January 28, 2023, 11:00 AM at:

Mt. Carmel Catholic Church

3549 Navajo St.

Denver, Colorado, 80211

A Reception will follow at:

Los Arcos Restaurant

4991 W. 80th Ave

Westminster, Colorado

1:00-3:00 PM