A bright light that had burned for 91 years went out on Tuesday, August 17, 2021, when Adelina M. Gomez, PhD, passed away of natural causes while in hospice care in Denver, Colorado. Nina, as she was known to family and friends, was a Professor Emerita of the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs (UCCS), where she served as a tenured faculty member for more than 30 years before her retirement at age 80. She was a force of nature who pursued life with energy, humor and confidence and encouraged those around her to do likewise. Nina was a passionate educator and a specialist in the field of intercultural communication, having provided mentorship and guidance to hundreds of students who wished to immerse themselves in this discipline. She frequently received messages of appreciation from former pupils who credit her for having a profoundly positive influence on their professional and personal lives. She was a strong advocate of diversity and equality in all institutions and in helping minority students to achieve their educational goals at UCCS. Nina authored many papers and frequently lectured to various professional organizations across the country on communication theory and practical application. She also served as a communication consultant to several organizations, including the Fiat Automobile Company in Italy. Nina was born on February 22, 1930, in Santa Rita, New Mexico, to Ramon and Isabel Marquez. When she was very young, the family moved to Alamogordo, New Mexico, where her paternal family roots were. She began school in Alamogordo where she proved to be such an apt student that she was skipped directly from first grade to third grade. The family returned to the Santa Rita area where she continued her education. Her father was adamant that she would be the first member of the family to earn a college education, but young Nina Marquez had other ideas. She went off to secretarial training after graduating from high school. Upon her return, she met a handsome young Army veteran named Leo Gomez. In the natural course of life, they fell in love and were married in 1949. After bearing two sons, she felt ready to pursue higher education and enrolled in Western New Mexico University to become a teacher and graduated with a BA degree. In short order, she earned a master’s degree at Western and soon after a PhD from the University of Colorado. Nina began her teaching career at Silver High School when it was located at the Western High School building. She went on to teach at Stout Junior High School, later to become La Plata Junior High. From there she began her university teaching career at Western. After Nina and her husband moved to Denver, Colorado she earned her PhD in communications at the University of Colorado and went on to teach at UCCS for over 30 years. Her many contributions to education were recognized in 1996 when she was inducted into the Western New Mexico University Education Hall of Fame. Despite Nina’s impressive rise in academia, she always had time for her family, chauffeuring her kids, as well as various neighborhood children, to their various sports practices and never missed her sons’ baseball games, swimming meets, recitals and plays. She lovingly taught her sons by example to respect and love literature as she did, including the works of Shakespeare, Chaucer and many other Masters of Literature. She was committed to community service, a devotion she shared with her late husband, Leo. As a young mother during the 1950s polio epidemic, she walked door to door in her neighborhood collecting donations as a volunteer for the March of Dimes. Later, much to her sons’ chagrin she became active in the Parent Teacher Association at North Silver elementary school. She is a former president of the Colorado Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association. She served as a member of the City of Aurora, Colorado, Civil Service Commission. When her husband died, she finished out his term as president of the American Ex-Prisoners of War, Colorado Chapter, the first woman ever to serve as the organization’s president. She also belonged to numerous scholarly and professional communication associations and societies. In retirement, she taught conversational Spanish to her fellow residents at her seniors’ apartment complex and edited and contributed to the residents’ newsletter. Dr. Gomez is survived by two sons, Paul and his wife Cynthia McKay of Parker, Colorado, and Raymond and his wife Linda of San Luis Obispo, California; a sister, Mary Lou Torres and her husband Richard of Albuquerque, New Mexico; and her favorite niece, Christina Sweeney and her husband Ed of Englewood, Colorado. Nina was preceded in death by her husband Leo and her parents, Ramon and Isabel. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that donations be made to the Gomez Scholars Fund in care of the University of Colorado Foundation, PO Box 17126 Denver, CO 80217-9155 or at giving.cu.edu.