Former state Rep. Lois Landgraf, a veteran advocate and influential Republican voice in El Paso County for more than a decade, died June 1 at 74, prompting an outpouring of remembrances from colleagues and community leaders.

A celebration of life will be held on Aug. 15 at The Gathering Place at the Farm, 11141 Ridgeline Drive, Colorado Springs.

Landgraf served in the Colorado House from 2013 to 2021, but her impact on Republican Party politics, particularly in El Paso County, went far beyond her service to the state.

Landgraf was born on March 16, 1952, in Chula Vista, Calif. She married James Landgraf in 1974. They had five children: Heidi, Greg, Jim Jr., Tod and Catherine.

James, a Vietnam veteran who served three tours, died in 2024, just shy of their 50th wedding anniversary.

Landgraf earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Maryland and an MBA from the University of Washington. While she lived in Seattle, she worked at the University of Washington’s School of Medicine, playing an integral role in starting the Cardiovascular Health Research Unit there. 

Prior to her service at the Colorado General Assembly, Landgraf was elected to the Fountain City Council. A tribute from the city said Landgraf “was deeply involved in the Fountain community through organizations such as the Fountain Economic Development Corporation and the Fountain Valley Business Network. Those who knew Lois knew she was truly a public servant at heart — thoughtful, dedicated, hardworking and deeply committed to helping others. Her impact on Fountain and the region will not be forgotten.”

House Republicans offered their condolences, calling Landgraf “a staple of the Republican Party and a steady, trusted presence in El Paso County, always fighting for commonsense conservative solutions that made our communities safer and stronger.”

They highlighted her work on veterans’ issues, including a pilot program she championed that allowed veterans with PTSD to train their own service dogs. They also pointed to her legislation targeting synthetic marijuana — a bill inspired by a conversation with a family member who worked in a hospital and had seen firsthand the toll of overdoses.

“Her legacy is written into Colorado law and carried forward in the veterans, families and communities who are safer and more secure because of her work. We extend our heartfelt condolences to her family and all who loved her,” House Republicans wrote.

In a Facebook post, former state Rep. Catherine “Kit” Roupe, a longtime friend, called Landgraf a “warrior for us all, fighting for veterans, families, the disabled and pro-life values.”

“We were close friends while we served in the legislature and stayed involved afterward, helping elect Republicans,” Roupe said.

That’s a reference to Peak Republicans, which Landgraf started with Jody Richie in 2020. It was part of the efforts by some local Republicans, who said they couldn’t count on the county party to get behind candidates. 

That earned them a censure from the El Paso Republican Party later that year, and a demand that the group stop using the word “Republican.” It didn’t work. 

In 2023, the El Paso County Republican Party Central Committee kicked her out. She responded through an op-ed written for the Colorado Springs Gazette.

“(We) will not stop helping good candidates get elected,” Landgraf wrote. “We will not stop supporting the right people. We will not stop fighting to save the party from the mean-spirited, small-minded, hateful people who are driving people from the party… hope to see some of you good people at the Peak Republican office. That is where the work was done last election and will be done again.”

Peak Republicans continue to work toward electing Republicans, Richie told Colorado Politics.

“We were so close,” Richie said. “I knew her as a person who didn’t back down from a fight and would stand up to anybody. If someone needed to be called out, she did it. That was part of her passion.”

Riche added, “We never backed down, no matter what.”

A ‘relentless champion’

Landgraf served on the board of The Resource Exchange, a nonprofit that partners with children and adults who have a variety of disabilities, delays, mental health or long-term care needs. 

“Lois was a relentless champion for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, always fighting to ensure every person was seen, heard, and supported,” the nonprofit said in a June 12 tribute. 

Some of that advocacy came from her own life, having a son with disabilities.

Fountain Mayor Sharon Thompson told Colorado Politics her family was the most special thing in her life.

“To watch her and Jim in action to give Tod the best life he could have, the way they would joke with him,” was special, Thompson said.

Thompson added Landgraf was one of those people that “you hit it off in a certain way.” They met when Landgraf was on the city council and doing a fundraiser to buy a bulletproof vest for the city police’s K-9. 

“I watched someone teach me how to gather people from a variety of lifestyles and jobs and where they are, and learn to bring them into a group and work for the bigger goals,” Thompson told Colorado Politics.

One of Lois’ proudest moments was when Thompson took her to that first meeting at The Resource Exchange.

“She was swamped with people,” Thompson said. “She listened compassionately, heard the need and figured out a way to fix it, if it was possible. It was a driving factor to figure out what she could do.”

A tribute Thompson wrote to The Resource Exchange board with Ed Bowditch and Colleen Head Batchelor noted that meeting. Landgraf had met the father of a young girl who was losing her eyesight and whose family had nowhere to turn.

“Lois stepped in immediately — listening, connecting and pushing until the child received the care she needed. That fighting spirit became the hallmark of her work,” they wrote.

The tribute went on to say that Lois championed stronger protections, better services and greater independence for people with disabilities.

Thompson recalled that Landgraf once told her, “If you’re ever going to run for office, never say anything that’s even half true. Just be honest with people.” 

In the days before she died, Landgraf was determined to work on a project for the Republican candidate for House District 21.

“I have too much to do!” she told Thompson. 

Bailey Military Support, which backs veterans in Colorado Springs, said that “while many knew Lois through her service as an elected official, supporting veterans and military families was not just part of her job. It was part of who she was,” they wrote. 

Among the lawmakers she served with, former Rep. Tracy Kraft-Tharp, D-Arvada, told Colorado Politics that Landgraf “was dependable, did the work and she was fun to work with. Everyone talks about working in a bipartisan way, but Lois was a good example of that.”

In a Facebook post, former House Majority Leader Amy Stephens, R-Colorado Springs, noted that she and Landgraf sat next to each other in the 2014 session.

Stephens said, “I’m grieved over her passing. Lois had a dry wit that could cut through any room, and a BS meter that was frankly more in tune than the bills we passed. There were days we’d roll our eyes together at the absurdity of the legislative process and then work together to see good bills pass.” 

She also noted Landgraf’s love for purses, commenting that Landgraf was “a connoisseur of beautiful purses.” 

Former Rep. Jonathan Singer, D-Longmont, said both came in for their first full session in 2013. Landgraf asked a lot of questions, he said, which he found “very annoying.” But he later realized she was learning, and told her in their last committee hearing together, “When you first got here, I didn’t know what to make of you.”

They ran close to a dozen bills together, based on common interests in disability advocacy.

They also served together on the House Health and Human Services Committee, where he was the chair and she was the ranking Republican.

“We met weekly to look at things,” such as here’s what’s coming to the committee and where the fight will be, Singer said.

“It was a quiet, understated friendship that really grew,” Singer told Colorado Politics.

During that final committee hearing, Singer handed Landgraf the gavel for the last hour.

“She was surprised, honored and maybe a little confused. I was her trusty vice chair (for that final hour) and had told the committee members what I was going to do. No one was surprised except Lois. I also wanted to make sure it was a bill that was going to pass!”