Carin (Carrie) J. Strause

In Loving Memory of Carrie Strause

August 9, 1977 - November 12, 2023

Carin J. (Carrie) Strause

Pine, Colorado-Carin J. (Carrie) Strause, 46, passed away at St. Anthony Hospital in Lakewood, Colorado with her family by her side on Sunday, November 12, 2023.

Funeral Services will be held at St. Joseph Church in Dedham, Iowa, on December 1, 2023 at 10:30 a.m. Burial Services will follow at St. Joseph Cemetery. The celebrant will be the Reverend Patrick A. Behm. After services, a luncheon will be held at St. Joseph Church Hall.

A celebration of life will be held in Colorado at a venue with a view of one of her favorite mountains at a time and date that has not yet been decided.

Memorials can be made to Teller County Colorado Animal Shelter.

Carin Jeannine (Carrie) Nepple was born on August 9, 1977 in Muscatine, Iowa, the daughter of James A. Nepple and Jeannine A. (Jennings) Nepple.

She graduated from Muscatine High School and received associate degree from Muscatine Community College and a bachelor's degree in accounting, maga cum laude,  from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. She worked in Colorado Springs and Tempe, Arizona, for Wells Fargo as the West Region Insurance Service Manager until the insurance subsidiary was sold and the as Vice President, Operational Risk Consultants for Auto Business Excellence. Carrie was honored as the insurance subsidiary's employee of the year in 2016. She also worked remotely part-time as a tax account with her son, Josef Strause, at NPL Tax and Accounting, LLC, in Muscatine, Iowa.

Her son Joe was the most important person in her life. Carrie and Joe moved to Colorado when Joe was a baby, and they spent many happy years in a cabin near Woodland Park, Colorado. They both loved the mountains and outdoor activities. Ouray, Colorado will always hold a special place in their hearts.

She met the love of her life, Jeremy Dutton, in the Mesa Airport in June 2015. They lived in Chandler, Arizona, before Carrie returned to Colorado with Jeremy. Together with Joe they enjoyed fantasy football, Carrie winning two seasons and potentially wining one more time this year. Carrie and Jeremy enjoyed music, especially the Grateful Dead. The last concerts they attended were at Red Rocks Amphitheater, where they saw the String Cheese incident in July and Ween in August. Carrie watched many edocumentaries, as she particularly liked the films of the director Ken Burns.

Carrie was a lifelong per lover. Her beloved dog, Otto, preceded her in death. Her last cat, Mikey, will miss her.

Carrie's family enjoyed her cooking, especially the green bean casserole and cranberry salad that she made for Thanksgiving. She enjoyed arts and crafts, including hand embroidery, needlepoint and photography. She collected handicrafts during her extensive travels throughout  the Western United States  and during her stay in Germany, Thailand, Cambodia and Chile.

Those left to honor Carrie's memory include her son, Josef X Strause, of Muscatine, Iowa; her father James A. Nepple, of Muscatine; her partner Jeremy Dutton, of Pine, Colorado. Her brother Jeffrey Nepple  and his wife Julie of Lakewood, Colorado; her brother Scott Nepple and his partner Patricia Acuna of Santiago, Chile; and her brother Andrew Nepple and his wife Lindsey of Littleton, Colorado. Her nieces and nephews are Cecelia Nepple, Cody Nepple, Luke Nepple, Cristobal Nepple, Vicente Huerta and Rosa Jean Nepple.

She was proceded in death by her mother on February 22, 2020. Carrie sang "Will the Circle Be UnBroken?" at the end of her mother's burial.