Welcome to the fundraising team of
In memory of Claudia Colin
Created by: Kari Johnson
Funds Raised
$2,920.00
Goal
$0.00
Amount Raised, Goal Amount, Fund Thermometer
Welcome to my Tribute Fund Page
The wondrous and inspirational life’s journey of Claudia Alice Colin was launched on Feb. 9, 1948. She grew up in Great Neck, New York, the daughter of Alma and George Colin, and the youngest of siblings Liz, Tom, and John.
In her youth, Claudia was moved and propelled by the social and cultural movements of the 1960’s. She was so in tune with the zeitgeist that on the day of her 16th birthday, she even sat in the audience of the Ed Sullivan Show for the first performance by the Beatles in the U.S. While studying humanities, fine arts, and philosophy at C.W. Post College, she marched in anti-Vietnam war demonstrations in New York and Washington D.C. After graduating from college and touring Europe for two years, Claudia lived most of her adult life in the San Francisco Bay Area, settling there as the counterculture was in full bloom.
Claudia’s commitment to peace, justice, and humanity endured throughout her lifetime, whether she was protesting against the Gulf War, serving the community as a dental hygienist at the Native American Health Center, or making herself available at a moment’s notice to talk or offer advice to anyone who wanted it.
Wherever she went, Claudia connected with broad communities of friends, family, and even strangers, who were touched by the depth of her warmth, kindness, openness, humor, support, generosity, and love. She appreciated the diversity of human races and cultures, and experienced many of them during her extensive travels on four continents. Some of her favorites were Greece, Italy, and Bali.
Claudia was always seeking and finding the beauty in life, which she infused throughout her home and garden, channeled as the manager of "Inky Pinkies," the print department at design firm Landor Associates, and shared generously with her family and communities. Not only a prolific and highly regarded potter, Claudia expressed exquisite images and profound feelings through her paintings, photographs, masks, designs, and theatrical productions.
You could always find Claudia involved in a wide variety of ambitious projects and eclectic interests, from meditation, yoga, and cooking, to music, dance, and thrift shopping. She was especially skilled in using her hands, and loved to build things and repair whatever needed fixing. As a savy and successful real estate investor and property owner, Claudia wouldn’t hesitate to drop down on hands and knees to replace a leaky toilet, rip out old drywall or re-tile a bathroom. She gained knowledge and earned her chops as a volunteer helping to rebuild homes through Habitat for Humanity.
Claudia had an immense vocabulary of big-time words that often came in handy, whether playing a mean game of Scrabble or earning her Master’s Degree in Clinical Psychology.
Claudia had an especially deep love and respect for nature. She was an avid and intrepid outdoorswoman who enjoyed hiking, biking, camping, skiing, kayaking, river rafting, bird watching, horseback riding, fishing and scuba diving. She managed to navigate through many wild adventures that generated legendary stories, such as the time she survived being trapped on a mountain top in a blinding blizzard or got tossed into a raging, rocky river during a whitewater rafting trip in the wilderness.
But what brought Claudia the greatest joy in life by far were her children, Lindsay and Kari, and her grandchildren, Jeremy, Crispin, Henry, and Ella. Their happiness was more important to her than anything, and she tried to be there for them in every way she could. Claudia was the most enthusiastic cheerleader for her children and grandchildren, and they were each her biggest source of pride.
In the final three years of her life, Claudia battled with grace and courage as ALS increasingly consumed her body. Yet even in debilitating sickness, Claudia always saw the glass as half full, finding ways to stay connected to friends and family, and making the most of her time in this world. That is a powerful and inspiring legacy she has gifted to all of us.
In the spirit that she lived, Claudia chose to donate her body to UCSF for medical research rather than having a burial or cremation. It was her hope that this final act might contribute to finding an effective treatment or cure for ALS, so that others might live in a world without this devastating disease.
Claudia’s family invites you to join her in this effort, if you are so moved, by donating here in her name to the ALS Association, Golden West Chapter.
The family is also setting up a niche in her name at the Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, CA, which includes a pottery "urn" made by Claudia that contains a single braid of her hair.
Prefer to make a donation by check? Click here for a printable donation form!
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