In Memoriam
| Publication year | 2022 |
| Pages | 66 |
| Citation | Vol. 51 No. 11 Pg. 66 |
In Memoriam
Zita Weinshienk
April 3,1933-October 7, 2022
The Honorable Zita Weinshienk passed away peacefully at home surrounded by her family on October 7, 2022. She was 89.
Born Zita Kay Leeson on April 3, 1933, in St. Paul, Minnesota, to Ada Dubov Leeson and Louis Leeson, Zita moved west with her family in 1945 to find a healthier environment for her younger brother with asthma. They settled in Tucson, Arizona, where they opened a furniture upholstery business and welcomed her second brother into the family.
Zita attended the University of Colorado from 1952 until 1954. To save up for graduate school, she returned to Arizona to complete her senior year and graduated from the University of Arizona in 1955. She decided on a career in law and in the fall of 1955 became one of the few women to be admitted to Harvard Law School, which had begun admitting women only two years prior. Zita's friend from CU, Hubert Weinshienk, was in her class at Harvard, and they were married during their second year. Zita graduated from Harvard Law School, cum laude, in 1958. She attended the University of Copenhagen on a Fulbright Scholarship the following year.
Zita returned to Colorado to begin her legal career and ranked number one on the Colorado bar exam. Her first job as a lawyer was as probation counselor, legal advisor, and referee for the Denver Juvenile Court. In 1964, Zita became Denver's first female jurist when she was appointed to the Denver Municipal Court. A year later, she became a Denver County Court judge, where she served until 1972, when she was appointed as a Denver District Court judge. On October 10, 1979, Zita became the first woman to serve as a judge for the US District Court for the District of Colorado when she was appointed by President Jimmy Carter. In 1998, Zita became a senior US District Court judge. She retired in 2011 at age 77.
Judge Zita Weinshienk (seated, far right) with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and fellow Colorado jurists at a Colorado Women's Bar Association gathering in 1994. Photo courtesy of CWBA.
Zita was committed to inspiring women and people of color to pursue careers in law. She was very proud to have her legacy carried on by her granddaughter Samara Hoose, who is an attorney in Denver, and by her stepdaughter Monica Haenselman, who is a district court magistrate in Boulder. Of...
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