Colleen Heitkamp

Colleen K. Heitkamp, loving daughter, sister, aunt, and friend passed away after a prolonged illness on September 24, 2020. Colleen was born on May 7, 1952 in Fort Dodge, Iowa, the first child of Rita and Irvin Heitkamp, Jr. Colleen resided in Ellicott City, Maryland.

Colleen graduated from high school in Clarion, Iowa in 1970. She attended Iowa State University and completed her undergraduate work at the University of Maryland. In 1991 she obtained her law degree from the Maryland School of Law in Baltimore. She worked at the Federal Communication Commission in Washington, DC until her retirement. At the FCC she served in many capacities; her favorite was that of Division Chief in the Enforcement and Consumer and Government Affairs bureaus. In 2006 she was honored with the “Gold Medal Award” for her service.

The church family of Cedar Ridge Community Church was an important part of Colleen’s life. Throughout the years she served in many leadership roles, including the pastoral team. She knew everyone, and took great joy in meeting someone new to the church, listening to them, and connecting them to others. She was also passionate about racial and social justice, and was part of the racial reconciliation team.

Colleen enjoyed traveling and the arts. She traveled the world, but without a doubt, her favorite trips were the multiple visits to San Diego and walking on the beach with her nephews. Enjoying opera, she often went to the Kennedy Center, and more recently attended live opera with New York’s Metropolitan Opera via the local movie theater. Her extensive library includes literature from all genres, and her beloved yearly event was the National Book Festival.

Colleen was preceded in death by her parents, her brother Dean (2007) and her nephew Brett (2015). To cherish her memory, she leaves behind her sister Janet Heitkamp of Laurel, Maryland and her nephew Taylor Heitkamp (Anna) of Marshfield, Wisconsin, her sister-in-law Le Ann, aunts and uncle, cousins, and dear friends.

A celebration of life service will be live-streamed on November 7th at 11:00 AM. Those associated with Cedar Ridge Community Church will automatically receive link information. All others please contact Janet Heitkamp. She will respond to ensure your information is correct.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to The Equal Justice Initiative (eji.org) or World Relief (worldrelief.org)

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