Phyllis Joan Lee, the woman who spent more than four decades teaching generations of La Plata County residents how to make delicious meals at altitude, died from injuries suffered in a car accident Friday near Breen. She was 79.
Lee retired in 2000 after 44 years with the Colorado State University Extension Service, the first 18 as home economist in Ignacio with the Southern Ute Indian Tribe and the final 26 in Durango, where she was the home economist and, later, executive director for many years.
She wrote a weekly column for the Food section of The Durango Herald for more than 20 years, where she shared techniques and recipes for cooking, baking and food preservation at high altitude.
“I collected a lot of those recipes into a book so they wouldn’t be lost,” said Wendy Rice, who became the family and consumer science agent at the Extension Office after Lee’s retirement. “When I came in, I found all kinds of files. She also taught a lot of sewing and decorating.”
Lee worked extensively with the La Plata County Fair Board, La Plata County 4-H and 4-H Leadership councils and the Extension Homemakers clubs as well as being active in the La Plata County Cowbelles and the Colorado and American National cattlewomen associations. She enjoyed judging the food exhibits at neighboring county fairs and the Colorado State Fair in Pueblo.
“She was a person of total integrity and character,” said Steve Short, who worked in the Extension Office, as an intern and then as a 4-H agent for several months in the late 1970s. “She was a real joy to work with, the smiles were frequent and the laughter easy.”
Lee particularly enjoyed working with young people, especially 4-H participants.
“She delighted in watching them progress in 4-H and grow into active community leaders,” according to her family.
That was the case with Short, who is now the chairman of the board at First National Bank of Durango.
“When you’re young, you’re going to conquer the world,” he said. “She would bring me back to earth in a gentle, professional way. I learned a lot from her, and she created some good foundations in my character.”
Lee was born to Frederick and Marie (Eisenach) Fiebig on Nov. 28, 1933, in Sterling. Her parents were Germans who had emigrated from Russia. Growing up on her family’s feeding and farming operation near Fort Morgan, she was active in 4-H, showing champion market steers at the State Fair, National Western Stock Show in Denver and American Royal Livestock Show in Kansas City, Mo.
After graduating from Fort Morgan High School in 1951, Lee went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in foods and nutrition from Colorado A&M University, now Colorado State University.
In 1955, she married Brice F. Lee, Jr. in Fort Morgan, and they moved to La Plata County the next year. When Lee wasn’t in the Extension Office, she was helping run their family ranch, where they had a registered Hereford operation.
A talented musician who played the piano and saxophone, Lee was a fan of the CSU Rams, any team that played their longtime rival, the University of Colorado Buffaloes, and the Colorado Rockies, Denver Broncos and Denver Nuggets.
abutler@durangoherald.com
Memorial service
A memorial service for Phyllis Lee will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, Aug. 16, 2013, at the Breen Community Building, 15373 Colorado Highway 140.
Mrs. Lee is survived by her husband of 58 years, Brice Lee of Hesperus; daughter, Lisa Pederson of Firesteel, S.D.; one granddaughter; and numerous nieces, nephews, in-laws and extended family members.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to La Plata County Cowbelles Scholarship, c/o Mae Morley, president, 968 County Road 127, Hesperus, CO 81326.
