Wanda Koshak

Wanda June Koshak died of natural causes on July 26, 2011, in Durango, Colo. She was 90.

June was born June 7, 1921, in Longmont, Colo., to Fannie and Cyrus Dillard. She grew up with her three brothers and nine sisters on the farm in Boulder County.

June worked in and ran her own restaurants in the Durango area since arriving in 1955. She was a well known figure in the local restaurant business and could make the best pecan pies in the county.

June discovered many talents after retiring from the restaurant business. She proved to be a talented painter and loved to paint nature scenes. She also worked in long stitch, cross stitch and pottery. Her family all have many of her works of art on display in their homes. Arthritis eventually tempered her talents but her family all still proudly display her works.

June was an avid reader with a broad taste and usually fell asleep with her latest novel in her hands, many times waking to the thump of the paperback hitting the floor.

June loved to hit the penny slots at the local casino and could spend hours matching wits with her favorite machine. You didn't interrupt when she was in the zone and her concentration rewarded her with hours of entertainment and an unusual record of money ahead.

June was married to James Dean Burns (deceased) and was divorced after 17 years and five children, Robert "Bob" Bell, Sharon "Sherry" June, Fannie Kay, Nancy Jane and Verna "Wendy" Marie.

June packed up her kids in Denver and headed for California in 1955. June always said she "stubbed her toe" when she made it as far as Durango and met her second husband, Stanley R. Koshak (deceased). They were married in 1956 and had two more children, Stanley Joseph and Tamara Sue. June was divorced from Stanley R. in 1976.

June celebrated her 90th birthday last month surrounded by her remaining sisters, sisters-in-law, all six of her surviving children and many grand- and great-grand children. Complete with a fairy tale horse drawn carriage ride and ending with June and all her sisters going for Harley rides, her family all have wonderful memories of June wearing a tiara with a little girl smile. It proved to be a wonderful sendoff for a very special lady.

June was preceded in death by her youngest daughter Tamara Sue Koshak and daughter-in-law Linda Burns.

June is survived by her sons Robert B. Burns (Durango), Stanley J. Koshak and his wife Stacia (Ester, Alaska), daughters and their husbands, Sherry and Herb Herrboldt (Bayfield), Kay and Gene Norby (Moses Lake, Wash.), Nancy Johnson (Durango) and Wendy and Jim McMillan (Delta) and five sisters. She is also very proud of her 20 grandchildren, 27 great-grandchildren and her first great-great-grandchild due in December. June also has many special nieces and nephews.

A graveside service will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 30, 2011, at Greenmount Cemetery, with Pastor Kenny Arnold officiating.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Shriner’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah; the American Cancer Society, District II - Southwest Colorado, 1800 E. 3rd Ave, Suite 101, Durango, CO 81301; or the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, P.O. Box 4527, New York, NY 10163.