James Rider Krendl

James Rider Krendl died peacefully on August 21, 2019 with his family at his bedside after a long and courageous battle. Jim was born on April 2, 1941 to Karl and Mary Krendl of Spencerville, Ohio. At a young age, he developed a curiosity and a love of books and public libraries. From the time he was 10 years old, he worked diligently raising tomatoes on his family farm to save money for college. Graduating as the valedictorian of his senior class at Spencerville High School, Jim studied political science at Harvard College, graduating in 1963 magna cum laude. Jim was especially proud that he earned a summa minus on his senior thesis on Anti-Guerilla Combat in Laos from Dr. Henry Kissinger.

After college, Jim served four years in the United States Army, including tours in Korea and Vietnam. He volunteered for Vietnam because he wanted to stay with the men he had trained when they had to face combat. Jim ended his army duties in 1967, having been promoted to Captain and Commander of an Artillery Unit in Vietnam, a remarkable achievement because he was not career military. He received a Bronze Star while in Vietnam for flying over enemy territory to direct artillery fire. Jim chose this risky task because he wanted to ensure his Unit did not fire on nearby civilians.

Jim then went to Harvard Law School after having been accepted three times. There he met his future wife and partner, Cathy Stricklin. They were married in 1969. This, Jim would brag, was his life’s greatest accomplishment. He recently celebrated his 50th anniversary with Cathy. After they married, they graduated from Harvard Law School in 1970.

Jim always wanted to start his own firm and turned down a job at a prestigious New York law firm to move with Cathy to Alaska. After practicing business law for almost two years, Jim and Cathy moved to Denver, Colorado seeking sunshine and warmth. After a few years of practicing with other Denver firms, Jim pursued his dream of starting a Denver law firm that focused on business issues. The firm evolved into Krendl Krendl Sachnoff & Way. Jim was named a Super Lawyer in Colorado from the time the award was first made and also a Best Lawyer in Denver in Corporate Law and Mergers and Acquisitions. The law firm was named first tier in Denver in Corporate Law, Mergers and Acquisitions, and Corporate Governance. Jim was proud that the eleven-member firm won that honor because it was competing against large national and local law firms.

Jim loved to solve complex business problems and draft documents that clearly reflected the transaction without undue legal jargon.

Jim also was a legal scholar. With his wife and partner, Cathy, Jim wrote law review articles, including a widely quoted article on piercing the corporate veil and covenants not to compete. For over thirty years, he also co-authored a book on Colorado Business Organizations and the Colorado Business Corporations Act and Article 90 published by West Publishing Company. Jim’s chapter on Mergers and Acquisitions was carefully researched and designed to help attorneys at all levels serve their clients to the highest standard.

Jim was far ahead of his time in encouraging his five sisters, his wife, and his three daughters to be the best that they could be. Jim believed and practiced equality for women long before that practice became wide spread. In his spare time, Jim loved long walks, cheering the Denver Broncos, especially in the preseason, playing in the snow with his daughters, telling his daughters stories where the hero was a

woman who devised a way to escape villains, and reading Uncle Scrooge Comics and Curious George books to his grandchildren.

Jim is survived by his wife, Cathy Stricklin Krendl, and his three daughters of whom he was very proud. They are: Margaret (“Peggy”) Elizabeth Krendl who is a Managing Director and head of Global Finance for Energy at the international consulting firm, Accenture; Susan Krendl Armstrong, who is an Executive Director at Cox Communications; and Anne Catherine Krendl, who is a tenured professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Science at Indiana University. He is furthered survived by his sons-in-law, Ergin Aydin, Kraig Armstrong, and Gavin Barnard, by his beloved grandchildren, James Christian Barnard, Reese Catherine Armstrong, Jennifer Catherine Barnard, and Jack Salim Aydin-Krendl, and by his five sisters, Karla Baatz, Cynthia Krendl, Dr. Kathy Krendl, Kristina Krendl, and Dr. Karri Krendl as well as brothers-in-law and many nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to your local public library to inspire curiosity and support other book lovers.