OBITUARIES & MEMORIALS
Rocky Mountain News
Wednesday, September 10, 2003
LAMB, VLASTA "VAL" Vlasta "Val" Schroeder Lamb was born in Brighton, IL, on February 6, 1922, the daughter of Victor W. and Ella Hanold Schroeder. She graduated from Brighton High School in 1938 and from the University of Illinois in 1942 with four majors. She was an accomplished pianist and loved classical music, especially opera. Following college, Val taught English at Carrollton (IL) High School for a year. She, then, went to work for the State of Illinois Dept. of Employment in Alton, IL, where she worked until 1964. She fulfilled a lifetime dream when the family moved to Denver, CO in 1964. There, Val worked for the Veterans Hospital, the Denver Public Schools Textbook Library, and the State of Colorado Highway Departments Purchasing division. She retired in 1992 and moved to Jacksonville, FL. Val was always active in the community wherever she lived. She was an officer in the League of Womens Voters in Alton. In Denver, she was a precinct captain for the Democratic Party and volunteered at the Denver Dumb Friends League. Val was a class B hiking leader with the Colorado Mountain Club. She enjoyed excursions on historic trains as a member of the Rocky Mountain Railroad Club. She was active in the Mandarin chapter of the A.A.R.P. and the River City Womens Club in Jacksonville. Raised as a Methodist, Val belonged to the Unitarian Church most of her adult life. On November 24, 2002, she accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior. She died peacefully at Jacksonvilles Memorial Hospital on the Lords Day, August 24, 2003. Her last words were, "Its okay; I want to go home." Val is survived by her daughter, Susan Margaret Lamb, cousins, and her beloved cat, Sara. Vals life was celebrated on Friday, August 29th at her daughters home, and a memorial service was held on Saturday, August 30, 2003, in the chapel of HARDAGE-GIDDENS MANDARIN FUNERAL HOME in Jacksonville, FL. Val requested that her ashes be scattered in the mountains of Colorado. Friends and family are invited to assemble at 11 a.m. on Saturday, September 13, 2003, at Sprague Lake campground in Rocky Mountain National Park, near Estes Park, CO. After a brief service, hikers will ascend a mountain to fulfill her final wish. In lieu of flowers, she preferred that contributions be sent to the Denver Dumb Friends League or the Jacksonville Humane Society.