Obituary: Laurene Berger Brooks Owen

December 23, 1933 – February 8, 2026

Laurene Berger Brooks Owen, affectionately known as Baba, passed away Sunday, February 8, 2026. Baba lived 92 years exactly the way she thought life should be lived. She always had the table set and the doors wide open. Baba believed that if some was good, more was better: more laughter, more conversation, more friends, more fun. She had the gift for bringing people together and turning any gathering into a celebration. Time spent with Baba was extraordinary—it was lively, memorable, and usually a little over-the-top in the best possible way.
Baba grew up skiing in Aspen in the early days as her father was an original director of the Aspen Skiing Corporation. Baba and her sisters Susan and Caroline (aka the Berger Girls) all had the gift of fun and brought that to Aspen throughout their lives. You may have heard the music and laughter coming from the gatherings on the corner of 6th and Smuggler late into the night on many, many nights. Or, maybe you were one of the fortunate many who joined that fun.
Baba is survived by her husband, Tom Owen, her sister, Susan Berger Sheridan, and many nieces and nephews – with 4 nieces living in the Roaring Fork Valley: Anne Rickenbaugh (Tom Verry), Katherine Rich (Peter), Caroline Dewey, and Lorni Sharrow (Christopher). Baba was preceded in death by her sister and brother-in-law, Caroline Berger Rickenbaugh and Kent L. Rickenbaugh, her nephew, Bart L. Rickenbaugh, her first husband, John Brooks Jr., and her parents, Laurene Walker Berger and George Berger, Jr.
A memorial celebration in Denver on June 17 at 2pm at the Denver Country Club. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions to the DENVER ART MUSEUM (www.denverartmuseum.org/en/donate) or a charity of your choice.