Michael James Monkman

Michael (Mike) James Monkman, 54, entered heaven on December 21, 2014 in his home in Aurora, CO, comforted by his wife and surrounded by his children, sister Linda, and brother Timothy, after a courageous battle with cancer. Mike’s easy going demeanor, unfailing kindness, and quick wit endeared him to all he met. Mike was born on August 27, 1960, in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. His family migrated to the Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, Ontario, Canada area in 1964. After graduating high school in 1978 from W.D. Lowe Secondary School in Windsor, Mike enlisted in the U.S. Army where he proudly served his country for nearly 10 years, including a tour in Germany as a part of the Army legal branch. Mike returned home to enroll in the University of Michigan where he completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science in 1992 and went on to complete a Master’s degree in Public Administration and Finance from the University of Syracuse in 1997 and subsequently relocated to the Denver area. Mike proudly served the state of Colorado for 15 years in a variety of financial analysis and budget management roles, including the office of the Governor of Colorado and most recently the Department of Human Services. Mike married his soul mate, Julie Welton, on January 2, 2011. They made each moment count during their four wonderful years together, vowing to always be honeymooners. He was a devoted father to his son, Cale, and was a loving step-father to Julie’s children, Zach, Jake, Luke, and Jessica Welton-Kubeczko. The family adopted their dog, Sophie, a fun-loving addition to the family and a loyal companion to Mike. Mike was a fun-spirited father and enjoyed spending time with his family and attending his children’s numerous events such as baseball, soccer, and softball. He also coached Cale’s soccer and baseball teams. Mike loved keeping up with current events, especially local politics, reading, writing fiction and poetry, going to movies, and traveling with his family. He could be seen every morning, at the crack of dawn, walking Sophie. Mike is survived by his beloved wife, Julie, his five children Cale, Zach, Jake, Luke and Jessica, his mother Patricia (nee Smith) Hanadel, father Vernon, his siblings Robert (Christina), Linda, Neil (Stella), and Timothy, his nephew Ethan (Linda) and niece Madeleine (Robert), and his mother in-law and father in-law, Jim and Joan Welton, Julie’s brother Jim Welton (Ann) their children George and Ellie, and Julie’s sister Jennifer (Allen) and their son Cameron, as well as many aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. Visitation will be from 4:00 - 6:00 p.m. on Friday, December 26 at Ponderosa Valley Funeral Services, 10470 So. Progress Way, Parker, Colorado 80134. Memorial services will be at 10:00 a.m. Saturday, December 27 at Southeast Christian Church 9650 Jordan Road, Parker, CO 80134. Following the funeral service, final interment will occur at Elizabeth Cemetery, near the intersection of CO Highway 86 and County Road 13 in Elizabeth, CO. Donations in lieu of flowers can be sent to the Denver Hospice http://www.thedenverhospice.org/Pages/Home.aspx or the Liddy Shriver Sarcoma Initiative http://sarcomahelp.org/donations.htm. Service Information