Irene Mitchell

79, a resident of Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and Los Alamos, passed away on January 10, 2013. She is survived by her son, Roger Mitchell, his spouse, Linda; two grandchildren; sister, Gia Jason of New York; and former husband, Ken Mitchell of Santa Fe. She was preceded in death by her son, David; sisters, Franny, Rosie; and brother, George. Irene was born in Pittsburgh, PA where she went to school and graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with an English degree before marrying and moving to New Mexico. She settled in Los Alamos, raising her two sons, and pursuing a writing career. She became a journalist and editor for the Los Alamos Monitor, winning a NM Press Association's EH Shaffer Award for best feature story of the year. Irene was an avid gardener which led her to specialize in writing about horticultural, botanical and ecological subjects. She published over a thousand articles in various publications including the New York Times, Sunset Magazine and the Albuquerque Journal. For 13 years, she had a weekly mountain gardening column in the Denver Post. She was a consultant for the Sunset Western Garden Book (Rockies and Southwest). Later, she worked for many years as a writer and editor for LANL and LATA. Irene was a devoted classical music fan and spent much of her retirement playing piano, and attending operas and classical music events with friends and family. Memorials may be made in her memory to Eisenhower MS Band Boosters, Eldorado HS Choir Boosters, Santa Fe Opera Outreach program or any organization that celebrates her love of music or gardening. Please visit our online guest book for Irene Mitchell at FrenchFunerals.com and provide your contact information, or contact the family, so that the family can inform you about the memorial and interment to be announced for the spring.