October 18, 1945 ~ August 9, 2020 (age 74)
We are here today to celebrate the life of Patricia Joan King Vigil. She was known as Joan by those who loved her. She was born to Wilson and Mildred King on October 18, 1945 in Denver.
She was the 5th of 6 children - 4 brothers and 1 sister. She grew up in Adams City and attended school there. In highschool she was very athletic. She was on the swimming team and participated in track and field. She qualified for the olympics and was set to compete in the relay race. Unfortunately she tore the ligament in her knee and was unable to participate.
This was one of her biggest disappointments.
After highschool, she worked at Commerce City bank and was a meat wrapper at Safeway. In 1962 she worked at Ciancio’s Pizza in Denver where she met the love of her life Bob Vigil, however they didn’t start dating until he returned from the Vietnam war in 1966. She spent a year in Seattle with her sister Carole. Bob would send her flowers while she was there for her birthday. She moved back to Commerce City in 1966 because she didn’t like the gloominess of Washington. Upon her return she went to work at her parent’s restaurant Mimi’s Cafe where she met up with Bob, who was managing the restaurant.
Bob and Joan were married July 22, 1967 in Commerce City. They had 4 children: Joanie, Rochelle, Gregory and Christopher and raised 2 of their grandchildren Rob and Kaylla. One of her favorite things to do was going dancing with Bob. They spent a lot of time dancing and as dad says: “We could cut a rug"
In 1983 Bob and Joan bought the house in Arvada where we spent many hours laughing and playing dice on the dining room table. During this time she worked at Lakewood open school as a cook and then at Armadillo with her good friend Wendy. She also had a map business. She sub contracted from a company in South Carolina. She went to USGS and picked up the maps and shipped them to customers all over the United States. She was very handy and was always fixing things around the house. She built shelves in Rochelle’s closet and a clubhouse with a window and roof that Greg and Chris cherish to this day.
She belonged to a deaf awareness group, learning sign language and performing many skits for the church to introduce people to sign language. Her favorite role was Raggedy Ann with the wig that was made from a mop. She cherished the friendships she made during this time and held them close to her heart.
She was diagnosed with MDS and MPV - a rare bone marrow cancer. She fought with dignity and strength through the treatments that caused many ups and downs. The family would like to thank the nurses that cared for her at the cancer center and at McKee Medical Center during her long struggle and finally the nurses at Pathways Hospice who gently cared for her and gave her comfort.
In 2011 Bob and Joan moved to Loveland because of her illness. They lived with Chris and his family until their house was finished. When she felt well enough she worked on the landscaping in the back yard and built a walkway made of flagstone. She loved to sit out in the sun with her dogs Misty and Andres.
Joan was quick witted and funny. She would spend hours sitting on the bed in her bedroom either watching hallmark movies or talking about everything under the sun with everyone that loved her. She was an avid Broncos fan and could be heard 3 blocks away yelling at or cheering for them depending on how the game was going.
She is survived by Bob, her husband of 53 years, her children Joanie, Rochelle (husband Bill), Greg(wife Heather) and Chris(wife Alicia), her grandchildren Camron, Rob, Damon, Kaylla, Olivia, Grace, Christian, Sal, Cruz, Isaiah, and Sienna, Her brother Gene King and tons of nieces and nephews.
She is preceded in death by both of her parents, 3 brothers, 1 sister, and 2 grandchildren.
Private Services will be held at Grace Place Church in Berthoud.
