By William J. Dagendesh
Loisann Silver-Chacon, a counselor with CSU-Pueblo’s Upward Bound Office who genuinely loved the students with whom she came in contact, died Monday following a lengthy illness.
Chacon, who began working with the Upward Bound office in February 1994, is survived by her husband Paul Chacon, a professor with CSU-Pueblo’s math department.
In an e-mail, Ismana Carney, the director of Upward Bound, said she was impressed with Chacon’s commitment and caring for students. She made sure students completed their college applications, she said, and worked to get them as many scholarships as possible.
“Loisann will be sorely missed by so many staff members at CSU Pueblo, Upward Bound and by the many Upward Bound students whom she served with such compassion and dedication over the 20 years or so that she worked with the program,” Carney said. She is a great loss to Upward Bound, to the CSU-Pueblo campus and to our community.”
Katie Bigelow, an office assistant with the Upward Bound office, arrived soon after Chacon’s departure. Chacon was an influential part of the office, she said, and will be missed by everyone with whom she worked.
“I never met her, but from what I understand she had a lot of influence on the people who work here,” Bigelow said. “I offer my condolences to her family and pray they are doing well.”
In a testimonial, Devon Baca, an Upward Bound graduate, said Chacon was like a mother to him. She would ensure he had completed his homework and handed in my scholarship material on time, he said.
“She was always constantly repeating how important it is to get everything handed in on time,” Baca said. “If she had not stayed on my case all the time nothing would have been turned in. I would have been late with everything and not have made my deadlines. She was the greatest friend you could have… She just took the time to care about all of us. She was always there when we needed her.”
Chacon will be buried in Virginia, and no local services will be held. Donations can be made to the American Cancer Society to help advance breast cancer research. The address is 1445 N Union Blvd # 100 to Colorado Springs, CO 80909-2881.
