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Brother Hopes Art Gallery Owner's Death Serves As Reminder To Drivers

By Jamie Leary

DENVER (CBS4) - A Denver woman killed by a driver while biking over the weekend is being remembered for the mark she left on the community. Nancy Condit, 64, died in the hospital on Monday.

Nancy Condit (1)
(credit: CBS)

She was struck Sunday afternoon in Englewood near the intersection of Downing and East Cornell.

The driver, who police identified as Dominique Cain, fled the scene but was apprehended just after 5 p.m. on Sunday.

"Emotionally, I'm not feeling hatred, I'm not feeling that much anger right now. At the same time, there needs to be consequences," said Randy Condit, Nancy's brother.

Randy says he would rather focus on the legacy his sister left behind.

Nancy Condit (2)
(credit: CBS)

Their father, William Condit, was a nationally and locally renowned artist. He encouraged Nancy to pursue art her entire life.

Nancy took four years of art school at the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley. She practiced everything from pottery to jewelry making. She was most passionate about watercolors.

Just before he died, William gave Nancy The Sand Dollar, his art gallery in downtown Denver.

Nancy loved nature and she loved biking and she wanted to show that through her art. Nancy said of herself on the Sand Dollar's website;

"With my paintings, I want to invite viewers to sing and dance through the magical landscapes of my imagination."

Randy says his sister was never in the business to make money. The business itself was sporadic but somehow she always had it under control.

"If the shop wasn't making money, someone would come in and buy a William Condit original and (that would) pay the bills for the month," said Randy.

But Randy said Nancy worked best in this unpredictable environment.

"She lived her life the way she painted, very spontaneously. It was like following a toddler around, ya can't keep up with her," he joked.

Nancy Condit (3)
(credit: CBS)

Sitting at his sister's desk at the Sand Dollar Tuesday, surrounded by his sister's work, was tough but Randy says it helps him feel connected to her. He pointed out some of his favorite pieces.

"See! She found this hive and made it into a piece of artwork; "Wasps Nest, art by nature," see she didn't even take credit for it," Randy said with a smile.

Nancy created her own community around the Sand Dollar and was admired by friends and strangers alike.

"It's kinda blowing me away a bit," said Randy as he choked up thinking about the outpouring of support for his sister after her death.

He doesn't want to dwell on how she died. He says until Tuesday, he hadn't really thought about the diver who struck her.

"I don't want to live my life worrying about what happened," Randy said thoughtfully.

He said he is trying to learn from what happened. He hopes that it will remind the community about the dangers of distracted driving and how much one family has lost because of a careless driver. He knows it wasn't intentional and he wants people to remember this as they get behind the wheel.

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(credit: CBS)

The other thing his family has talked about in the days since Nancy's death?

"The thing that we all thought about, you're here one day and gone the next and you better take advantage of the time you have here."

Jamie Leary joined the CBS4 team in 2015 and currently works as a reporter for CBS4 News at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. She couldn't imagine a better place to live and work and will stop at nothing to find the next great story. Jamie loves learning about and hearing from her fellow community members, so connect with her on Facebook or Twitter @JamieALeary.

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