Former Pagosa Springs resident Gladys Leona Thayer passed away in Del Norte, Colo., on May 2, 2025, leaving us with heavy hearts. She was born Feb. 27, 1929, in a tar-paper shack in northeastern Colorado, the first child of Bill and Letha Adams. In 1934, the family migrated to a ranch in the Blanco Basin near Pagosa Springs, Colo. Leona later married rancher Carl Delbert Thayer and to this union two children were born, Patricia (Jim) Prentice and CD (Marlene) Thayer.
Leona wore many different hats during her lifetime, from being a rancher’s wife to being a businesswoman in various entrepreneurial adventures, including a farm implement business and a liquor store. Her most prized accomplishment was refurbishing the Hill House Manor overlooking 6th Street in Pagosa Springs into a bed and breakfast. Leona lived her life in both Colorado and Oklahoma.
Leona is survived by her two children, seven grandchildren, numerous great-grandchildren, three nieces, as well as many friends and extended family members. She was predeceased by her ex-husband, her parents, siblings Virginia Suhre and Wanda Rambo, and one grandchild — Rusty Thayer.
Donations may be made in her name to the San Juan Historical Society, P.O. Box 1711, Pagosa Springs, CO 81147.
There will be no services. Arrangements in care were made by Strohmayer’s Funeral Home of Monte Vista, Colo.