Ann Loper Obituary

Ann Falk Loper, longtime resident of Vail, passed away peacefully on March 11, in Denver, surrounded by her close family.

Ann was well known in Vail, having worked for the Vail Ski School as a part time ski instructor for more than forty years.

You couldn't cross a street with her without running into a friend or neighbor ready with a warm hello - a small reminder of how deeply rooted she was in the community.

Ann was an accomplished skier and instructor, becoming one of the first fully certified female ski instructors of her generation. She taught part time, first at Lake Eldora, then on to Winter Park (where she taught disabled skiers) and finally in Vail for a total of fifty years, retiring from teaching at 84. Ann didn't retire her skis until she was 87. Her response to any question about her age was "it's only a number, and it's unlisted".

Ann grew up in Boise, Idaho, and her early skiing was at Bogus Basin. By the time she was in her teens, Ann was racing with the ski team.After spending a season waitressing and racing in Sun Valley, alongside Gretchen Fraser - the first American to win an Olympic medal in alpine skiing at the 1948 St. Moritz winter games - Ann was fast as a bomb. In one race against Fraser, she was clocked just one second slower.

Ann attended the University of Colorado, Boulder, graduating with a Bachelor of Science, where she met her husband William Dean (Bill). Ann and Bill were happily married for 66 years.

Bill was a pioneer in building many of the notable structures in Vail - the Vail International, The Mark, the Vail Racquet Club, Sandstone, the Villa Cortina, the communication tower and the original Lionshead lift houses and parking structure.

When the snow melted, Ann traded her skis for her pottery wheel. She brought the same dedication she showed in sports to every part of her life. Ann wasn't just a skier but also a talented ceramicist, choir singer, and devoted animal caretaker.

Ann was a strong woman of principle who held a deep respect for human and animal life. Her love of the outdoors and her commitment to nature as a guide paved the way for her lifelong quest for beauty, while also teaching her how to care for those around her. In the spring, Ann and Bill enjoyed long walks in the mountains among the flowers, and when they moved to Potato Patch in 1993, they spent many hours fostering feral cats for the Eagle Valley Humane Society. Together, they successfully fostered more than 220 kittens for adoption from their home in Vail.

Following Bill's death in 2018, Ann moved back to Denver.

Ann will be cremated at a private ceremony. No public memorial will be held and the family suggests that those wishing to honor Ann's memory make a donation to the Eagle Valley Humane Society.

Ann is survived by her three children, Amy (m. Kenny), Steve (m. Jennifer) and Ted (m. Virginie), her grandchildren, Eli, Maria, Martin, Willow and Margaux, and great grandchildren, Lucien and Thelma.