Debra Lee Hickman, also known as Debbie Mason, has joined her mother Carol Mason and siblings Tracy, Michael Ann and Carol Lee in the afterlife. Debbie passed on February 6th, 2024 around 4 a.m. at the age of 69. She was at home surrounded by family. Lovingly remembered by her children Tracy (Cody) Hervey, Sean (Jennifer) Hickman, her siblings Terry Kazakov, Scott Mason, her grandkids Collin, Ashly and Donovan Hervey, her great granddaughter Yuki Bean-Hervey and her niece Chenoa Mason. Debbie graduated high school early through an acceleration program in Tahoe, continued her education through 4 different colleges and finished with 2 master’s degrees. With a third still in progress, she was one class on statistics away from that degree. Always worked in fields that helped people (civil servant positions) from case manager with human services for over 20 years to caregiver of the elderly and disabled for the past 12 years. During her time with human services she worked through the ranks quickly she went from case manager to training manager to hearings manager. No matter what her title was, her goal was always to help as many people as she could. Born in Long Beach, spent a lot of her childhood in Lake Tahoe. She spent time in Ridgecrest, Sonora, Tulare and Visalia. Until she settled in Denver, Colorado to be near her kids and grandkids. She landed a job with a big department store. That's where she met Vickie Savage. They quickly became friends and then roommates. They lived together for almost 10 years. During that time Debbie actually died in their apartment. Vickie found her and resuscitated her while waiting for the paramedics. Because of this act of heroism we had 10 more years with her. A few years after that event she moved to Aurora where she lived with her daughter, son in law and grandkids til the end. Loved baking, from making cookies weekly to decorating the family birthday cakes and holiday treats. A few years ago Debbie's great granddaughter wanted a unicorn shaped cake for her 5th birthday. The cost of such a cake was ridiculous so she decided to learn how to do it. Over the course of 10 days she watched as many diy videos as she could find. She made the cake a day in advance so if there were any issues she would have time to try again. Her first attempt was perfect, nothing else was needed. She did such an incredible job! So crafty and creative. She loved making handmade gifts for her friends and family. About a year ago she started doing spin art. She designed canvases and vases as gifts. She enjoyed making jewelry almost as much as wearing it. She made gift baskets for every occasion. Decorating was her passion especially for birthdays and holidays. She had an incredible eye for detail and loved making something out of nothing. She recently fell in love with bowling. So much so that she picked out a ball and shoes that we got her for her birthday. She hadn't even had a chance to get the finger holes drilled before she fell ill. Kayaking was something she started doing in the last couple years; after a trip to Tennessee where she went kayaking for the first time. Snapchat filters were one of her favorite pastimes She played on snapchat a lot and enjoyed taking funny pics with her great granddaughter. Shopping and going for long drives were how she would relax and unwind. The year before last she took a road trip with her daughter and granddaughter to New Orleans. She got to travel through more than 5 new states on that drive! She was so relaxed and at peace traveling through the countryside. So kind-hearted and empathetic. One instance was a lunch outing with Vickie. She gave a panhandler her lunch money and said “I'd rather they had a warm meal’. She was always putting others' needs ahead of her own. She was literally the kind of person to offer you the shirt off her back. She carried extra blankets in her car so when she encountered someone without a coat she could offer them a blanket for warmth. While last minute grocery shopping on a christmas eve she encountered a family who was unable to pay for their groceries. She took it upon herself to pay for the complete order and wished them a happy holiday.