Anita Bryant Obituary

Anita Louise Bryant (aka: Mrs. Bryant) passed away November 24, 2021 in Wheat Ridge, CO after a three-year battle with cancer. She was a beloved wife, mother, sister, and educator.

Mrs. Bryant was born December 30, 1946 in Ottumwa IA. She grew up in an Air Force family and lived in several cities from San Bernardino, CA, to Belen, NM, to Shreveport, LA where she met her future husband, John Bryant. Mrs. Bryant went on to earn her bachelor's degree in education and started her career in education as a 2nd grade teacher at Mesa School in Shiprock NM. Mrs. Bryant and John eventually moved to Cortez, CO in 1976, where they raised their two daughters and Anita began her 20-year career as an educator in Colorado.

Mrs. Bryant loved learning and spent many of her years going to college during summer breaks to earn her master's degree and began working on her doctorate. She was a teacher at Manuagh and Mesa Elementary school, and shortly after she received her Master's in Education she accepted a position as a Vice Principal at Cortez Middle School. She was one of the first women school administrators during that time. She retired from Colorado and worked another 25 years in New Mexico retiring in 2019 from Grants High School.

She had a genuine love for people and poured her heart into her students, parents and teachers. Education was not a job or a career but a lifestyle. She worked around the clock supporting her students not only during school hours, but beyond. She was described by others as having a heart of gold, yet used tough love to ensure her students' and teachers' success.

Mrs. Bryant was preceded in death by her husband John; and her daughter Shannon. She is survived by her daughter Francyne Bryant Schultz and husband Troy; her sisters, Donna Bailey, Valerie Williams and husband Andrew, Roberta Isham; her brother-in-law Tom Bryant and wife Betty; her nephews Walter Bryant and wife Rechanda, Cody Bryant, and James Williams, Sr.; her nieces, Tommi Sue Cox and husband Dan, Jackie Jones and husband Frank, and Jillian Rogers and husband Mark; along with a multitude of friends and fans.

Mrs. Bryant's memorial services will be held Saturday, December 11, 2021, at St. Margaret Mary Church in Cortez, CO with a rosary at 10:30 a.m. followed by a memorial mass at 11:00 a.m. A gathering for friends and family will immediately follow.

Services are under the direction of Ertel Funeral Home. To send condolences or to view the full obituary, log on to www.ertelfuneralhome.com and click on the obituary section. Memorials may be made to the Bryant Memorial Scholarship Fund at the following: https://secure.payk12.com/school/Grants-High-School/697/3103/14577.