When Karin Alaniz endowed a scholarship at the University of Minnesota nursing school after she became sick in 2015, she said she was grateful to have the opportunity to work with undergraduate students.
"Teaching and mentoring have been my passion. To me it wasn't work," she said. "It has been a pleasure and honor to be able to contribute to the next generation."
Alaniz taught at the school's nursing school for more than 35 years, taking an interest in pediatrics, human growth and development. She also co-founded a preschool camp for children with asthma staffed by undergraduate nursing students.
Alaniz, 76, died of complications from brain cancer April 30 at the Waters senior care facility in Edina. Even with her illness, she lived independently and went out for lunch and a trip to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum on her most recent birthday, said her son, Lee, of Playa Vista, Calif.
"Many of her older students reached out to her when they learned she was sick," he said. "After students graduated, they would stop by and see her when they were in town. They were connected through life."
Brianna Bloedorn was awarded one of Alaniz's scholarships. In a letter of appreciation to Alaniz, Bloedorn described the impact of one of her classes.
"It was your enthusiasm, true interest in our everyday lives and the overwhelming care you showed for us that made you one of the most significant professors I have had," she wrote.
Lee Alaniz was born the day his mother took her college nursing exam. He recalled following her on her teaching rounds at Children's Hospital in Minneapolis when he was 12 and hanging out with kids who had cancer.