Alice Cheney

Alice Elizabeth Cheney, 83, passed away peacefully on September 3, 2026, in Fort Collins, Colorado, surrounded by family, following complications of pneumonia. A small memorial service will be held for the family at her sister's home in Shenandoah Junction, West Virginia. The family would love for those who knew Alice to share their memories of her on this page; memories shared here will be read aloud at the service.

Alice was born in Cleveland, Ohio and grew up in Napoleon and Toledo. She graduated from DeVilbiss High School in 1961 and earned a degree in Medical Technology from the University of Toledo.

Alice met Marshall Froker while he was doing a work-study internship at the Toledo Blade. They married in 1966 and settled in Evanston, Illinois, where their daughter, Erica, was born in 1969. Alice and Marshall later divorced, and her son, Jorn, was born in 1984. In 1986, Alice moved with Jorn to Ojai, California, and later to Northern California, before they returned to Chicago in 1990.

Alice worked as a medical technologist until the mid-1970s when Montessori education became her passion. After training to become a Montessori teacher, she spent most of her teaching years at Near North Montessori School. Alice loved teaching young children between the ages of three and six. She even changed the way she wrote her own name, using an “s” instead of “ce” because it was easier for her pupils to sound out. Alice continued teaching until disability led her to leave the classroom in the early 2000s, though she continued to write letters to the Chicago Board of Education long after she retired making the case for incorporating Montessori education into the public school system.

Alice had a lifelong love of pets. She never met a cat or dog she didn’t like, and she never met a stray animal she didn’t bring into her house. Alice loved music and would often be found singing a song or whistling a tune, right up to the very end. She loved reading about philosophy and science and listening to National Public Radio. She enjoyed attending family reunions and researching genealogy. She was always pondering life’s big questions and loved having deep discussions about philosophy.

As Alice’s health declined, she moved from Chicago to be close to family in West Virginia and then Colorado.

Alice was preceded in death by her parents, Martha (nee Juringus) and Cloyce Cheney, and her brother-in-law, Tom Trumble. She is survived by her sister, Ann Trumble; her brother, Bill Cheney (Barbara); her daughter, Erica Cirigliano (Jim); her son, Jorn Cheney (Lana); and her granddaughter, Elora Cheney.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the following charities, both of which played an important role at different stages of Alice’s life:

Touched By An Animal cat shelter - Chicago - https://www.touchedbyananimal.org/donate

Animal Welfare Society of Jefferson County, West Virginia - https://www.awsjc.org/donate