Shirley Young

Shirley Young, 87, passed away at a Fort Collins nursing home after being diagnosed with bladder cancer at the beginning of 2010. She was born to parents Jack and Edith Laidman in Maple Heights, Ohio, and graduated from Maple Heights High School in 1940. Except for brief periods in Missouri and Texas during the 1940s, she resided in the Cleveland area until 1963. She then moved to Southern California and lived in Long Beach and Orange County for 32 years until moving to Fort Collins in 1996. She was a housewife and worked in restaurants until she retired in 1975. She was an avid volunteer for several organizations, including the Disabled American Veterans Auxiliary, the Long Beach VA Hospital, and the AIDS Foundation of Orange County. From 1997 to 2004, she served as a hostess at the Fort Collins Senior Center and was a member of the Friends of the Senior Center. Shirley was preceded in death by her parents, husband George R. (Jack) Young, Jr., and two brothers, Bernard Laidman and Sanford Laidman. She is survived by her son and daughter-in-law, Kirk and Jean Hallahan, granddaughter Jenna Paige Hallahan, sister Arline Philips of Bedford, Ohio, sister Joyce (James) Simler of Sagamore Hills, Ohio, and 14 nieces and nephews. Shirley had a gift for caring and was a friend to everyone. She ministered with cards and notes stuffed with words of encouragement and comfort, and delivered dozens of bud vases filled with roses and peonies from her garden. She also penned poetry that expressed her heart. Her family and friends were blessed by her always- positive outlook, gentle kindness, generosity, and belief in the value of everyone she met. A memorial service will be held Tuesday, March 9 at 2:30 p.m. in the living room at New Mercer Commons, 900 Centre Ave., where she had resided for five years. Memorial gifts may be sent to the Food Bank for Larimer County, 1301 Blue Spruce, Fort Collins, CO 80524.