Dawn M. Witiuk

Dawn Maureen Witiuk, age 54 went to be with the Lord Jesus Christ on March 17, 2015, leaving behind a legacy of Faith, Family and Friends.   She is survived by her high school sweetheart and constant companion Mike. Together they successfully raised two children.  For 33 years, Mike and Dawn had a wonderful life and a playful and loving relationship and service to each other.  For the first 22 years of marriage, Dawn was devoted to taking care of her family.  However, Dawn always wanted to be a teacher, so after receiving her degree in Math Education from UNM, she began her teaching career at La Cueva High School. During her time at La Cueva, Mrs. Witiuk developed and executed one of the first Statistics programs at APS, which grew in popularity every year.  Mrs. Witiuk was a creative and engaging teacher who affected the lives of hundreds of students throughout the years.  Dawn was dedicated to her profession.  She went on to become Nationally Board Certified in Mathematics and was a 2014 Golden Apple Teacher of Distinction.  While teaching was her passion, her family was her heart.  She dearly loved her family and especially her grandsons, Brody and Asher.  She always said “People not things” are most important. Dawn was diagnosed with late stage breast cancer in 2009.  Being a statistics teacher, she knew the odds were against her.  However, she never let Cancer define who she was and what she wanted to do with her life.  Her spirit and fight were an inspiration to everyone she knew. Dawn is survived by her husband Mike and their two children Nathan (Jenn) and Ariel.  She is also survived by her parents Carter and Rosanna Kelly, brother Patrick Kelly (Karen) of Albuquerque, sister Paula Vaughn (Ron) of Houston and twin sister Darlene Gutierrez (Philip) of Columbus Ga, many nieces and nephews and her beloved dog Scruffy. Dawn’s was a life well lived!

A memorial service will be held in her honor on Saturday March 28th at 11 AM at New Covenant Church  7201 Paseo Del Norte NE, with Pastor Steve Stucker officiating.  Honorary pallbearers are Kacy Thomson, Chase Thomson, Josh McAlister, Hannah McAlister, Sofie Schunk, Hattie Schunk, Sarah Wible, Brad Wible, Delaney McKee Woodward, Riley McKee, Cassidy McKee and Garvey McKee. Dawn also wished to thank the professionals at UNM Cancer Center and UNMH for their excellent care, especially Dr. Zoneddy Dayao who understood Dawn and connected with her throughout the years. Education was one of the most important things in Dawn’s life and she wanted her legacy to live on. Therefore, in lieu of flowers contributions can be made to the Dawn M. Witiuk Education Memorial Fund at any Compass Bank.  Proceeds will be transferred to the APS Foundation for future scholarship awards to La Cueva High School students.

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” 2 Timothy 4:7