FORT COLLINS — Gwendolyn Eileen Beckett Minks, 86, of Fort Collins, died Jan. 15, 2010 at Good Samaritan Fort Collins Village.

She was born Sept. 22, 1923 near Greensburg, Kans., to Claud H. and Nancy E. Durnil Beckett, and married Norman Arthur Minks, her high school sweetheart, on April 21, 1944 in Greensburg.

Gwen graduated from Greensburg High School in 1941 and from Wesley Hospital School of Nursing at Wichita, Kansas in 1945. Gwen and Norman raised their children on a cattle ranch near Hereford, Texas. Later, after moving to Saguache, Gwen pursued her career as a registered nurse by first working in the school district and then in public health in Saguache County. After Norman’s death in 1987, Gwen relocated to Del Norte, where she worked as a staff nurse and then Dept. head in the Rio Grande County Public Health Dept. until 1994, retiring at age 71.

She was active on several volunteer boards of directors serving elders and disabled individuals, as well as the building project for the new Rio Grande Hospital. Gwen was a member of the Methodist churches of Greensburg, Hereford, Saguache, and the Pioneer United Church of Del Norte. Other memberships included History Club and PEO, both in Del Norte and Fort Collins.

Her husband, Norman Minks, and her parents, Claud and Nancy Beckett, preceded her in death.

Survivors include her son, Lawrence Minks (Joan) of Durant, Okla.; daughters, Nancy Coleman (Gregory) of Broomfield, Colo. and Margaret Mizushima (Charles) of Wellington, Colo.; sister, Mollie Dudgeon (Gene) of Terre Haute, Ind.; grandchildren, Laura (Rey Ford), Amanda (Alvaro Baca), Joy and Aaron Minks, Roy (Briene) and April Coleman, and Sarah and Bethany Mizushima; great-grandchildren, Kaitlin, Karissa, and Dylan Coleman; step-great-grandchildren, Chacey Ford Malhouitre (Romain) and Charissa Ford; step-great-great-grandchildren, Kaya and Hailey Saks.

A memorial service will be at 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 23, at Good Samaritan, Fort Collins Village Chapel, 508 W. Trilby Rd., officiated by Chaplain Steve Kitterman. A gathering for family and friends for a time of sharing will be held at the United Methodist Church, 600 W. Lincoln, in Greensburg on Jan. 24, 2010, followed by burial in the Greensburg Fairview Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to the Gwendolyn Eileen Minks Scholarship Fund at Southeastern Oklahoma State University, c/o Southeastern Foundation, Inc., 1405 North 4th Ave., PMB 4187, Durant, Okla. 74701-0609 or Good Samaritan Society, Fort Collins Village in care of Bohlender Funeral Chapel, 121 W. Olive St., Ft. Collins, CO 80524. Friends may send condolences to the family at bohlenderfuneralchapel.com.