Josephine S. Mann

Former Aspen resident Josephine S. Mann died August 18, 2010. She was 91.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Floyd by seven months. Had Floyd not died, they would have been married 70 years on June 3, 2010.

She is survived by her three children, Christine, Gregory and Jeffry; three grandchildren, Seth Bittker, Rachel Bittker, and Jessica Tarbet; five great-grandchildren, Caleb, Zach, Esther, Sarah, and Zane.

Josephine was born and raised in Iowa City, Iowa, where she graduated from the University of Iowa.

Having been friends since high school, Josephine and Floyd were married in 1940. Soon after their marriage they moved to Washington, D.C. There, they had their first two children, Christine and Gregory. After the war, the family moved to Ann Arbor, Mich., where Floyd completed his Ph.D. at the University of Michigan. When the children entered school, Josephine earned her master’s degree in education at the University of Michigan. Josephine chose to work outside the home at a time when many women did not. Soon after she began teaching, Jeffry was born. Josephine taught in the Ann Arbor public schools. Her favorite position was the 3rd-4th grade combination class. In 1970, Josephine retired and moved to Aspen with Jeffry so that he could follow his passion, ski racing.

Soon, Floyd retired from the University of Michigan and took a position at the University of Colorado. After his retirement from the University of Colorado, Floyd joined Josephine and Jeffry in Aspen. During her early years in Aspen, Josephine was active in the women’s movement, working to secure equal rights for women. From the mid-1970s to the early 1980s, her interests took a spiritual turn, and in 1982 she was ordained a minister in the Movement for Spiritual Inner Awareness. In her capacities as a minister, she assisted with births, deaths, and weddings. Over the years she presided at the weddings of her son Jeffry and her granddaughter Rachel. Next Josephine’s interests turned to Tai Chi and then Soo Bahk Do. In 1998 she earned her Black Belt in Soo Bahk Do at the age of 80.

In 2000 she and Floyd moved to Scottsdale, Ariz., where they lived until their recent deaths.