MARCH 28, 1942 – OCTOBER 13, 2023
Delores D. Steeley went home to Heaven on Friday, October 13th, 2023. She passed away peacefully in Fort Collins, Colorado at the age of 81.
Delores was born in Fort Collins on March 28, 1942. Her parents, Gottlieb and Emma (Deering) Paul, raised their nine children on the farm. Delores never had the opportunity to finish her schooling. She was brought up during a time when, once you were old enough to work on the farm, that’s what you did. Farm life was hard work but she and her siblings found different ways to have fun.
Delores left Fort Collins in 1964. She followed the man she loved, Donald Lee Steely, out west to California. Together, they welcomed a son, Bruce. Delores and Don relocated to Cheyenne, Wyoming in 2002, when they retired. Don passed away in 2019 in Cheyenne. Delores made her final trip home to Fort Collins, to live closer to her son, in 2020.
Delores was devoted to her family. She was able to stay home and raise her son and her step-children, Vickie and Randy. As a stay at home mom, most of her time was spend keeping up the house. She loved to take her family camping whenever time allowed. She was a very supportive mother and believed her son could always do better even when he may have had some trouble in school or even in life. Family celebrations were of the utmost importance to Delores. Whenever she could, she spent the holidays with her children and grandchildren, both in Colorado and California. She looked forward to family reunions in Colorado.
Delores loved to sit outside and watch the birds and squirrels play in the yard. She enjoyed classic country music, watching PBR on the TV, solving puzzles, and going to the rodeo. While living in California, she was a member of a small branch of Christ Community Church. Back in Colorado, she found daily prayer at home.
Her son, Bruce, fondly remembers holidays at home; how his mother would take great care in decorating their home and how she cherished the handmade gifts that he would make at school. Delores may not have expressed her love for her family in words, but she would embrace them in a hug whenever she had the chance.
She was a kind, beautiful, and loving soul and will be dearly missed.
Delores leaves behind a beautiful legacy and is survived by her children, Bruce Steeley (Alexandra), Randy Steeley (Lynn) and Vickie Chavez; grandchildren, Alison Steeley, Shayne Hay (Samantha), Shannon Hay, Justin Steeley (Autumn), Laura Janus (Arthur), and Heather Gibson; great-niece, Megan Cordato, who was like a granddaughter to Delores; sisters, Barbara and Nancy; and by several great-grandchildren. She was greeted in Heaven by her love of more than 53 years, Don, her parents, Emma & Gottlieb, brothers, Larry and Delbert, sisters, Rose, Eileen, Shirley, and Patty, and her son-in-law, Richard Chavez.
Delores didn’t want any big to do when her time came. To honor her wishes, a small graveside service will be held and she will be laid to rest with her beloved Don at Resthaven Memory Gardens in Fort Collins. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are encouraged to St. Jude Children’s Hospital Cancer Research Center.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.resthavencolorado.com for the Steeley family.
