Former Colorado first lady McNichols, 90, 'a good soul'

Tillie Fong, Rocky Mountain News

Published August 5, 2006 at midnight

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Marjory McNichols, former first lady of Colorado, loved children and taking care of the sick.

"Her life was about taking care of other people," said her daughter Marjory Wilson, of Edwards. "She was a good soul. She wanted to make sure that everyone was happy."

Ms. McNichols died Thursday at Meridian, an assisted care community in Englewood. She was 90.

Rosary will be held at 4 p.m. Sunday at Horan & McConaty Chapel, 191 S. Colorado Blvd., in Denver. Funeral services are scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday at All Souls Catholic Church, 4950 S. Logan St., in Englewood. She will be buried at Mt. Olivet Cemetery.

Born on March 23, 1916, in Denver as Marjory Roberta Hart, she attended Philomena's Elementary School and Cathedral High School.

She also went to Loretto Heights College from 1934-1935, and was awarded an honorary degree from there later.

Between 1935 and 1942, she worked as a clerk for the Denver Rio Grande Railroad in Denver, and also modeled for the Alexander Film Co. in Colorado Springs.

"She was really beautiful," said her daughter. "Her mother's family was from there and there was a group that she would model and do commercials for. She had some fun and made some money."

She married Stephen L.R. McNichols on June 27, 1942, in Denver. She supported her husband's political career, accompanying him on the campaign trail.

"He was devoted to doing the right thing for the state, and she felt it was a good thing, too," said Ms. Wilson.

Ms. McNichols was Colorado's first lady from 1957 to 1963, when her husband served as governor.

It was during this time that she served as the chairwoman of the Colorado chapter of March of Dimes, a group that she would be active with for 10 years.

Ms. McNichols also began volunteering at Mercy and St. Joseph hospitals as part of the ladies auxiliary. She continued with her volunteer work with the hospitals until the 1980s.

But even as first lady, she always took time to be with her children, dropping them off and picking them up from school, and attending all their sport events.

Ms. Wilson tells the story of her parents being invited to accompany President Lyndon B. Johnson and his wife to the airport when they visited Colorado.

"She told them, 'go ahead without me' because she didn't know where her children were," said Ms. Wilson.

At the time, the children were being looked after by a staffer and were not in the governor's mansion.

Ms. McNichols eventually did accompany the president on the trip, but only after having the Johnsons wait for her while she tracked down her five children.

"Johnson said at the time, 'If more women were like her, the world would be a better place,' " said her daughter. "It was the right thing to do."

Ms. McNichols also was a devout Catholic and active with different churches with the Archdiocese of Denver. She was most recently a member of Our Lady of Lourdes parish.

In addition to her daughter, she is survived by four other children: Stephen McNichols Jr., of Pleasanton, Calif.; Robert McNichols, of Paradise Valley, Ariz.; Williams McNichols, of Taos, N.M.; and Mary McNichols, of Denver; her brother, Robert A. Hart Jr., of Tucson; 10 grandchildren and 10 great-great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband in 1997.

Contributions can be made to The Society of the Miraculous Medal, 1181 W. St. Joseph St., Terryville, MO 63775.

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