Kathleen Farley remembered as 'trailblazer' in Pueblo politics, community activism

Kathleen Farley is being remembered for her trailblazing political career, instrumental role in bringing an arts center to Pueblo and her immense generosity.

Farley served as a Democratic National Committeewoman, was Pueblo County's first female commissioner and was the Sangre de Cristo Arts and Conference Center board of trustees' first president. She died on May 23 surrounded by family at the age of 86.

By the time her granddaughter Maria was born, Farley had already served 12 years on the Democratic National Committee and was in her first term as a Pueblo County commissioner. Maria said her grandmother left a tremendous impact on her life, even through her younger self did not fully understand her grandmother's "reach" in politics.

"As a grandmother, she was the best," Maria said. "She made sure that we traveled places and always tried new food ... She was always there for us. You could call her with anything you needed. She had a huge impact on my life, from a relationship perspective and from a female role model perspective."

Born to Maxson and Doris Murphy in Denver, Farley grew up talking politics at dinner with her parents and brother, Dick. After graduating from Denver East High School, she attended the University of Colorado in Boulder, where she studied history with plans to become a teacher.

At CU, Farley would meet her future husband, Tom Farley, a 1952 graduate of Pueblo Catholic High School who was in Boulder working toward a law degree. The two married in 1960 and attended the Pueblo County Democratic Convention shortly after their honeymoon. In 1964, Tom was elected to the Colorado House of Representatives. Two years later, at just 32 years old, Tom would become house minority leader.

While Tom was attending legislative sessions, Farley stayed with the couple's four children and was a steadfast volunteer in Pueblo. Farley and Pat Kelly lobbied in the late 1960s for Pueblo County commissioners to match a federal grant to build what would later become the Sangre de Cristo Arts and Conference Center. In April 1971, she was elected to serve as president of the arts center's board of trustees.

In 1976, Farley was appointed by Pueblo City Council to be the first female president of the Pueblo City-County Board of Health. That same year, she was elected to serve on the Democratic National Committee's 24-member executive committee. In 1978, she chaired Puebloan Ray Kogovsek's successful U.S. House of Representatives campaign for Colorado's 3rd Congressional District.

Farley was considered by many to be among the strongest candidates to succeed Kogovsek after the seat was vacated in 1985, according to a February 1984 article in the Chieftain. However, Farley told the Chieftain she decided not to run for Congress.

"It would be very difficult to sever my current commitments and venture into an all-consuming, new way of life ... I also feel the importance of family and friends. I have decided at this juncture in my life, I am not willing to forgo my many interests and personal goals to undertake full-time campaigning and the demands of Congress," Farley told the Chieftain in 1984.

Farley did, however, seek office at the local level. She was elected to the Board of County Commissioners in 1990 and served two four-year terms. She also was on the Democratic Steering Committee for Bill Clinton and Al Gore's presidential campaigns during that time.

As a board director for the Pueblo Conservancy District, Farley played a role in establishing another Pueblo staple — the Historic Arkansas Riverwalk of Pueblo. Other positions held by Farley throughout her life included president of the Colorado Women's Forum, leader of the Colorado State Parks Board and executive director of the Southern Colorado Community Foundation.

Even after retiring from politics, she dedicated herself to her community. She worked to develop projects and scholarship programs with the El Pomar Foundation and Pueblo Community College Foundation.

"She was a trailblazer, but she wasn't doing it because she was a woman," Maria said. "She was doing it because it needed to get done, but she was proud to champion women and proud to have people look at us differently — that we can do things, be involved and make big things happen."

Pueblo Chieftain reporter James Bartolo can be reached at JBartolo@gannett.com.