Valerie Retana, former local resident, passed away Friday, July 24, 2026, at Swedish Medical Center in Englewood.

She was born May 18, 1992, in Fort Morgan to Vicente & Viola. Valerie attended area schools and graduated from Fort Morgan High School in 2010.

Valerie worked several jobs, mostly as a waitress while she lived in Fort Morgan where she also attended Morgan Community College. She then attended Pickens Technical College in Aurora and then The University of Arizona where she received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2023. She was currently working as the director of nursing for Gracia Hospice in Arvada.

Valerie loved spending time with her family and friends, and she especially loved being a wrestling mom, traveling with her husband and son to his wrestling tournaments. She also loved gardening, raising chickens, and traveling, especially to Mexico.

She is survived by her husband, Mauricio Rosales Salazar and son, Valente Maricio Rosales Retana of Denver; her parents, Vicente & Viola Retana of Fort Morgan, two sisters in Colorado Springs, two sisters in Mexico, and one brother in Topeka, KS.

Visitation will be at the Heer Mortuary Chapel in Fort Morgan on Wednesday, July 29th from 4 – 6 PM with recitation of The Holy Rosary at 6:00 PM.

Funeral services will be at 10:00 AM on Thursday, July 30th at Saint Helena Catholic Church in Fort Morgan. Interment will follow in Memory Gardens Cemetery in Fort Morgan.