Juanita Annette Lopez made history in 1947 when she became the first female taxi driver in Colorado, her family said.
They called her “Deuces,” according to her grandson, because she drove cab 22. She continued to make a splash for decades, dedicating every spare moment to helping others.
Lopez died March 5 at 93.
“She was a pioneer,” said her grandson, Daniel Lopez. “It was a pretty huge breakthrough for women.”
During World War II she procured a job making ammunition when many factories were left understaffed by departing soldiers.
“She held this job near and dear to her heart since her brothers were overseas,” her grandson said. “She paved the way for the advancement of women in Colorado.”
Born Nov. 26, 1921, in Mait land, Colo., Lopez moved to Denver in 1937. Soon after, she met an entrepreneur named Daniel Lopez, who owned the Silver Moon Bar downtown.
In an interview conducted by her family shortly before her death, Lopez said, “He asked me to marry him, but there were too many wild women running around that bar in those days. So, I told him that he couldn’t marry me until he sold that bar.”
Daniel Lopez obliged, and they soon married and opened their own bar together called The Bowery. In 1958, Lopez opened Annette’s Beauty Salon in their home, which she ran for 46 years.
“For $10, she would pick up her clients, give them a shampoo and set, feed them her famous beans and green chile and give them a ride home,” her grandson said.
Lopez also donated much of her time to helping sick individuals. For nine years, she served as a Eucharistic minister and visited nursing homes on weekends to give Communion.
“She was definitely a person of faith and family,” her grandson said. “She was very generous. Whenever she met somebody, she always made them feel special. That’s the type of person she was.”
Lopez, also known as “Grandma Pudgy” after her Pug named Pudgy, is survived by her daughter, Faith Lopez; her grandchildren, Daniel, David, Toby, Gina and Noel; 20 great-grandchildren; 17 great-great-grandchildren; and her sister, Barbara Archuleta.
She was preceded in death by her son, Daniel Lopez Jr.; her husband, Daniel Lopez; her grandson, Christopher Lopez; and her sister, Betty Chavez.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
Anna Gauldin: 303-954-1666, agauldin@denverpost.com
