Tracy Leigh Otis

Tracy Otis, 63, of Cheyenne, found eternal peace on September 14, 2024. A gentle hippie at heart, she loved coffee, lilacs, and reading in the bathtub. She was a talented artist who enjoyed crafts in her spare time. She was a loyal, patient, kind, and loving daughter, sister, wife, mother, mother-in-law, grandmother, and friend who made every day special and every road trip and holiday magical. She will be missed greatly by everyone who knew her but lives on through our memories. 

“Nail,” as she was affectionately known by her father and brothers, was an Air Force kid who traveled the world, including North Dakota; Okinawa, Japan; California; and Minnesota before eventually settling in Wyoming.

Tracy and her husband of nearly 40 years honeymooned in Yellowstone Park, then raised four daughters together in Hillsdale, east of Cheyenne. She worked hard without complaint her whole life, often rising before dawn to make coffee and breakfast burritos for her husband and his coworkers. She taught her daughters how to swim, sew, cook, forage, garden, take care of animals, and make home remedies. She was involved in their academic and extracurricular lives, volunteering at school, shuttling kids to and from practices, games, and high school jobs, sewing matching dresses for school concerts, and encouraging them to always be themselves and try their best. She cared for her girls when they were sad, scared, or sick and her comforting touch always made things better.

Together, the Otis family enjoyed picking dandelions to make homemade “honey” jelly, camping and stargazing in the backyard, hiking, working on home improvement projects, “pioneer nights” reading the Little House books by oil lamp, doing puzzles together, and sharing chocolate bars while watching their favorite shows. For summer road trips around Wyoming and neighboring states, Tracy researched fun things to do, created busy boxes for the car, and prepared sandwiches and snacks.

Tracy went all out for the holidays, leading her kids in craft activities and making themed treats. She made almost every Halloween costume from scratch. An excellent cook, she prepared elaborate Thanksgiving feasts that were enjoyed by her family and later, by her sons-in-law. The day after Thanksgiving was always lefse day, where she taught her kids how to make thin Norwegian flatbreads from leftover mashed potatoes then spread them with butter and sprinkle them with sugar. Every Christmas stocking and Easter basket was exceptional.

Tracy had one grandson and three granddaughters. She paid attention to their unique personalities, learning about their interests, playing games, and finding unique gifts, like real gas masks and make-your-own-soda kits. She enjoyed hours chatting with her kids on the porch while the grandkids played.

She was preceded in her journey by her mother. She is survived by her father, two brothers, her husband, four daughters, three sons-in-law, and four grandchildren.

At Tracy’s request, no services will be held. In lieu of flowers, please treat yourselves and your families to a special experience in her honor.