Doris Monahan

Doris (Lafler) Monahan, 90, died Sunday Aug. 24 at Sterling Regional Medical Center. Visitation will be at Tennant Funeral Home on Thursday 10 to 6 p.m. and a funeral service 10:30 a.m. Friday, Aug. 29 at the First Presbyterian Church with Rev. Michelle Witherspoon officiating. Interment will follow at Riverside Cemetery.

Born in 1923 in Lincoln, Doris Lafler grew up on a farm near Sidney. She was educated in country schools and at Sidney High School. After graduating, she attended Doane College, and then moved to New York City where she worked for a costume-making company and was a camera girl at the Copacabana. She returned to Nebraska and at the University of Nebraska she met Rex Monahan, to whom she was married for 61 years until his death in 2009.

In the early fifties Doris and Rex moved to Sterling, Colo. where Rex entered the oil business and Doris raised their four children: Susan, Kathleen, Melissa and Bill.

Doris not only drew and painted, but also studied art history and was an expert on everything from Romanesque Cathedrals to Van Gogh. Her love of northeastern Colorado history led her to write two books on the subject. A lifelong learner herself, she with her husband Rex were supporters of the Literacy Coalition in Sterling and established and maintained the Monahan Second Chance Academy, which provides college courses for inmates at the Sterling Correctional Facility.

All who knew her admired Doris for her extensive knowledge and her willingness to share it. She presented numerous programs for Sterling Reviewers and her work as an historian were recognized by the Logan County Historical Society

She was preceded in death by her husband Rex. She is survived by her children: Susan Monahan (Mark Brucks), Kathleen Monahan, Melissa Jankovsky (Rob) and Bill Monahan (Linda); grandchildren: Cailan Matthews, Meagan Schmidt, Rex Monahan, Tess Jankovsky and Molly Jankovsky, and eight great grand children.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Doris Monahan Memorial Fund c/o Tennant Funeral Home, PO Box 1547, Sterling, CO 80751.