Maureen Dean Grosser, 66, passed away February 25, 2000, at the University of Utah Medical Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Maureen was born March 9, 1933, in Cleveland, Ohio to George and Audress Dean. Maureen was described by her parents and those who loved her as a caring, energetic, happy person. As a child, Maureen was spirited, outgoing, and adventurous. As a young woman, Maureen excelled at ballet and other forms of creative dance. in 1956, at age 23, Maureen graduated from the prestigious Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University, and in 1960, married Bernard I. Grosser, MD in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. After moving to Salt Lake City in the same year, Maureen devoted many years to caring for the ill as a Registered Nurse at Salt lake County Hospital, St. Joseph's Villa, and Hillhaven Convalescent Center. In the mid-1980s Maureen worked as a hospice nurse caring for many of the early victims of the AIDS epidemic in the greater Salt Lake community. While raising her three children, Steven jay, Mark Jeffrey, and Minda Anne, Maureen returned to her early passion for dance, teaching and performing with Virginia Tanner Children's Dance Company. In 1977, Maureen earned a Masters degree in Modern Dance from the University of Utah. At age 43, she was the oldest graduate ever to have received this degree. For her Master's thesis, Maureen successfully developed a modern dance curriculum in several primary and secondary schools, introducing children and young adults to creative movement.In 1994 a diagnosis of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease opened a new chapter in Maureen's life, one filled with both sadness and joy for all who knew her. After two years of failing health, Maureen received the first double-lung transplant performed in Utah. After a difficult recovery, she enjoyed three and a half wonderful years in which she brought joy and love to the lives of her three grandchildren, Sahra Lior, Joshua Aaron, and Rachel Rose. Following her transplant, Maureen became very active as a volunteer to promote organ donor awareness with Intermountain Organ Recovery Systems. In her outreach work, Maureen spoke frequently at schools, hospitals, and health fairs. She was a strong presence for other transplant patients. During this period, Maureen also cared for infants awaiting placement in adoptive homes.
Maureen's children and grandchildren will always remember her as a nurturing mother. She showed us as young children the wonders of the mountains and deserts of Utah. She taught us a deep love and respect for wild places. She always encouraged us to "push the envelope," filling our home and lives with art projects, scientific experiments, music, dance and imagination. She will be deeply missed by her children, and by her grandchildren, too. She was a "great, great, great Gramma!"
Maureen's family would like to thank the dedicated physicians, staff, and friends who provided excellent medical care, emotional support, and friendship to Maureen. In particular, we would like to acknowledge the Lung Transplant Team, the Pulmonary Rehabilitation Program, and the Heart and Lung Transplant Support Group at the University of Utah Medical Center.
Maureen is survived by her three children; three grandchildren; father; and brother, David John (Jack) Dean.
There will be a memorial service for family and friends 3 p.m. Monday February 28, at Evans & Early, 574 East 100 South, in Salt Lake City. The family may be contacted at (801) 467-5722.