Olivia M. Moore
Olivia was born Feb 25, 1942, in Las Vegas, New Mexico, the oldest of four children of the Rev. José de la Luz Medina and Doris Cecilia (Valverde) Medina. Her parents instilled in her a powerful sense of "familia" and that service to others is our primary mission in life. In 1943, the family moved to Alamosa, Colorado. In 1960, she moved to the Flint Hills of Kansas to attend college. At the College of Emporia, she encountered the two loves of her life: teaching, and a certain linebacker who would challenge her intellect and shelter her heart for the rest of his days.
Olivia married Eldon Edgar Moore Aug 8, 1964, at the Emmanuel Presbyterian Church in Alamosa. They started work for Jefferson County Public Schools that year. Olivia taught first grade at Maple Grove Elementary in Lakewood, CO, and third grade at Prospect Valley Elementary in Wheat Ridge, CO. She earned a Master of Arts in Reading from the University of Northern Colorado.
Daughter, Angela, was born in 1971 in Colorado. She and Eldon moved back to Kansas where son Scott was born in 1973. Olivia decided to stay home to teach her newest "students." Always driven to educate, and one to rise to a challenge, when she realized there was no preschool for her children or anyone else's, she and another teacher started Morris County's first preschool, The Early Learning Center. Olivia also believed in the importance of children's mental health and was active in the Mental Health Association of Morris County.
In 1978 Olivia was hired by USD 417 to start a Title I preschool for children with educational and social needs. She taught Pre-K to 3rd grade at Council Grove Elementary School and was the Title I Reading Teacher, then Coordinator for the district. As Title I Coordinator she helped usher in a Title I math program. In 1986 she was named Master Teacher. In 2000 she was named Outstanding Reading Educator by the Kansas Reading Association. From 1995-2002 Olivia was a part of the Kansas Accelerated Literacy Learning (K.A.L.L.). Olivia was a member of the International Reading Association, Kansas Reading Association and the Flint Hills Reading Council. She was a pioneer in the training of teachers on methods of reading diagnosis over electronic delivery. Olivia retired from USD 417 in 2002.
Olivia was a kind and caring person, deeply involved in the lives of all around her. She made people feel nurtured, loved and accepted for who they were and always saw the best in them. Her friends and family knew they could count on her, and she wanted every child to be assured they were loved, encouraged to grow and supported to face any challenge.
Eldon passed away Sept. 11, 2010, and Olivia helped care for him to the end, something she did with love. She was also preceded in death by her sister Patricia (Medina) Swensen, brother Charles Medina and brother-in-law D Jesse Moore. She is survived by her brother the Rev. Mark Medina; sisters-in-law Elizabeth Medina, Barbara Robinson, Amy W. Moore and Phyllis Moore, as well as children Scott and Angela Moore, son-in-law Ben Moore, soon to be daughter-in-law Michaela Shirley, grandchildren Sierra Her Many Horses, Ezekiel Moore, Apollo Moore, José Moore y Piña, and Atlas Shirley.
Inquires regarding donations to honor the memory of Olivia may be sent to [email protected]
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