Rodney Earl Greiner

Rodney E. Greiner July 3, 1930 - October 5, 2016 Join Rod's family, friends and colleagues for a celebration to share stories and remember a life lived to the fullest. Saturday, October 29, 2016, 1:00pm Ponti Hall, Denver Art Museum Please enter through the historic Silber door (steel tube) on the north side of the original museum building. There is no admission fee to attend. Please let us know if you plan to attend so we can be adequately prepared to receive you. Call, text or email Carrie 720-933-3813 [email protected] "We did everything together. No one can do much alone. It takes a lot of people working together. It is never just 'me;' it is always 'we'." - Rod Greiner "Keep it interesting." - Ruth Brunskill Greiner Rod was born in Crawford NE and spent his school years with his family in Ainsworth NE. He moved to Denver CO in 1949 met Ruth Brunskill (d. 2005) and they married in 1950. They had three daughters and an adopted a son †" Ellen Makenna (d. 2016) and husband Tim Kenan, son Joshua Thies and daughter Cally Thies; Janet Greiner and husband Chuck Hanson, daughter Rachel Hanson; Carrie MaKenna and husband Craig Rouse; and Jeffery Greiner and partner Walt Grazeck (d. 2005). Rod was from a small town in northern Nebraska and had two sisters †" Shirley and husband Harold Minne who had two children; and Ann Pricket who had three children. His family was his first example of the entrepreneurial spirit. His father†™s family ran a road construction company before the great depression. And later his mother and father owned and ran a greenhouse and flower shop that all the kids helped with. Rod approached his work life, starting with a lawn mowing service, as a business owner and never stopped. He was a small town kid who came to the big city of Denver to make his fortune †" and that he did. Rod came to Denver in early 1950. He met Ruth at the Timberline Club for tall singles. Men had to be 6†™2†� or taller and women had to be 5†™8†� or more. Rod proposed to Ruth in his car while overlooking Echo Lake on the road to Mt. Evans. Ruth always laughed and said, †œAfter I said yes, he asked me how much money I made.†� They married after only two months of dating in November of 1950. They built a life-long partnership based on trust, respect and always with the aim to keep life interesting. Every year Rod and Ruth took an anniversary drive to see the fall colors. From humble beginnings in a garage they built and lived in while constructing their first home in Edgewater, Rod and Ruth created an inspiring and adventurous life for themselves, their family and anyone else who would come along. That led to living in Lakewood for 20 years and then owning the Zang Mansion at 7th and Clarkson which became a cornerstone for their life of business, philanthropy and community-building throughout the past 30 years. They traveled to over 40 countries and made many lasting friendships along the way. They believed that if you know someone in another country you'll be less likely to want to go war or see harm come to them. Rod was a dynamic business entrepreneur, committed to community service and devoted to family throughout his life. He began his career in the life insurance industry. In the 1970s he broadened his business scope to a newly developed field called financial planning. His vision included a team of financial professionals who could fulfill all the needs of clients. This became the American Zang Investment Council headquartered in the Zang Mansion. Rod was an avid reader and believed in lifelong learning. He earned the Charter Life Underwriter (CLU) and SEC Securities Exchange Commission series 7, 63, 65 and 24 and other industry certifications and licenses. He also read the Christian Science Monitor, Business Week, and history of all of the countries he and Ruth traveled to. Ruth work as the Mansion Receptionist and did the accounting. She also developed and presented High Tea that included a tour of the historic mansion with highlights about the many innovations in the building as well as the local history of Denver. Rod and Ruth were active in community service through such organizations as Kiwanis, Rotary, Denver Kids, Artists of America, the Denver Art Museum, Colorado Symphony, Denver Center for the Performing Arts and Women†™s Voices. They raised funds and helped design and build the housing for a telescope, install the sundial, and most recently build a greenhouse at the Jefferson County Mt. Evans Outdoor Lab. Together they hosted refugee families from Cambodia, exchange students from Sweden, Austria, Colombia and Japan, and artists through Art of America and Tanner†™s Indian Art Gallery. Their activism ranged far and wide. Eventually they started the American Zang Foundation with the mission to promote and encourage academic and technical education for underprivileged students; teach economic management to and foster personal financial responsibility for low-income families; and to support historical, cultural and ecological preservation. Through the Foundation Rod ran a track club for underprivileged high school students that required they remain drug and alcohol free and keep their grades up. This was a keystone of the work of the Foundation for more than ten years. Rod and Ruth decided together early in their marriage that they wanted a dynamic and interesting family life. After much trial and error they settled on sailing in the summer and skiing in the winter. And of course it wasn†™t enough to just enjoy sailing on the weekends. Rod was active in the Rocky Mountain Sailing Association and founded the sister organization SAIL (Sailing Association of Intermountain Lakes) which coordinated the activities of 27 sailing clubs in Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico and Utah. Not only that but Rod and Ruth founded a company to build a better boat. The Penguin was an open hull boat with a single sail that was traditionally built from wood. They set up a business to design and build the same boat out of fiberglass with an aluminum mast which would make it stronger and lighter in weight. Rod†™s design included a double bottom so it would be self-righting and wouldn†™t sink when capsized. This lead to the first-ever international Penguin Class Regatta in Colorado attended by sailing enthusiasts from as far away as Argentina.. Later Rod and Ruth took several open water sailing adventures with friends and family to the Abaco Islands, Vancouver Islands in Canada, the Chesapeake Bay, and Tonga Islands. In addition to sailing and skiing Rod and Ruth supported and encouraged their four children†™s many sports and cultural activities that included swim team, band, Job†™s Daughters and DeMolay, choir, theater and art. During their children†™s adult lives they were supportive of their careers and families whenever possible. Upon Ruth†™s death in 2005 Rod continued his work and philanthropy. Rod and daughter Janet, worked with several local Rotary clubs to attain a Rotary International Matching Grant for the RC Mid-Town Mumbai to fund a water conservation project in two villages near Mumbai. They made a follow-up trip in 2013 to check on the progress. Rod kept up with his many associations and continued to make new friends everywhere he went. He joined Friendship Force an international travel club, and while living at Lakewood Estates he took advantage of their travel guest rooms and took several trips to see family and friends. In 2014 Rod wrote his memoir, OUR GOOD FORTUNE, in which he expressed his gratitude for the many people and experiences that helped make a difference in his life. It†™s difficult to separate Rod†™s accomplishment from Ruth†™s contributions. For fifty-five years they were a couple who together made a big difference in the lives of many locally and internationally. They chose a life of adventure, travel, philanthropy and community service. We are grateful for their example and strive to carry on that legacy.