Opalanga Pugh, a professional storyteller died on June 5 to bone cancer. She was 57, according to the Denver Post. She spent most of her time living in Denver. The gifted speaker earned numerous awards for her storytelling and community outreach. Pugh, graduated from Denver’s East High School. She grew to love telling stories while traveling in Nigeria, and studying traditional African storytelling in Gambia.
“We could tell more about our humanness, the power, the magnificence, the beauty of it,” said Cleo Parker Robinson, to the Denver Post. “She was a gift and she remains a gift.”