Gladeane Lefferdink

Member of the Boulder community, Gladeane “Gladi” Lefferdink passed on August 8, 2016 due to natural causes. She was born and raised in the small town of Bloomfield, Iowa with her parents, Dean and Gladys Goode, brother, Phil, and their loving extended family of Iowan farmers. As a 4-year-old with perfect pitch, Gladi began playing the piano and reading sheet music early in her childhood. Her passion for music was already being planted. She came to Boulder in 1953 to attend CU’s College of Music and graduated with a degree in Organ Performance. While attending CU, she met her husband, Greg Lefferdink, and they married in 1956. She played the organ at Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church for two years, and then resigned to teach second- and third-grades at Lincoln Elementary in Boulder for ten years. In 1970, she reentered the music ministry at Mt. Calvary in a big way. In addition to playing the organ, she attended conferences to learn worship planning. From that moment through as recently as 2015, Gladi’s special ability was to create meaningful worship services using the joyous sounds of jazz, gospel, world, blue grass, and contemporary music to express her faith. She shared her talents by leading a youth choir called New Covenant in the mid-70s, organizing and playing for multiple Gospel Festivals uniting black and white cultures in fellowship during the 80s, and leading a women’s gospel group at Mt. Calvary in recent years. Gladi also worked for the CU-Boulder admissions office as manager of the National Alumni Admissions Assistance Program for over a decade, beginning in the early 80s. With her passion for CU and service work with alumni, Gladi managed one of the largest and finest admissions volunteer programs in the country, garnering her a prestigious Gold Medal Award from the CU Council for Advancement and Support of Education. Her work laid a solid foundation for future alumni volunteer endeavors, and her legacy continues today through current CU-Boulder Alumni Association programs. While she touched many with her gifts, she bestowed even more to her family. Gladi was a dedicated wife, mother, and grandmother, always going the extra mile to make her family feel loved and supported. She planned birthdays and holidays with special care, attending to details such as perfectly wrapped presents and lovingly prepared meals. She was most proud of her epic lemon meringue pie that she made for her husband on his birthday each year. Gladi was also known for her extensive collection of crèches that adorned their home at Christmas and her love of Santa Fe culture, food, and art. She loved to travel with her family and friends throughout her life, including trips to Austria and Alaska. Gladi is survived by her husband, Greg, daughter, Leslie, son, Joe, grandchildren, Ben, Kayla, Noah, and Micah, and brother, Phil. She and Greg would have celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary September 7, 2016. A memorial service will be held at Mount Cavalry Lutheran Church (3485 Stanford Court, Boulder, CO 80305) on Sunday, August 21st at 1:00 PM with a reception to follow. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers; donations may be made to TRU Hospice at www.trucare.org or 2594 Trailridge Drive East, Lafayette, CO 80026 or Mt. Calvary Music Department, 3485 Stanford Ct, Boulder, CO 80305.