Valere Marie Devers

by family and friends in Las Vegas, Nevada on December 18, 2022. Born in a two-room farmhouse on

the prairie, five miles from Park, Kansas on January 11, 1937, she was the fourth of six children born to

Martin and Frances Hecker. When Val was seven, the family permanently relocated to a farm outside of

Oakley, Kansas.

As a young girl with three older brothers to teach her, Val’s days consisted of all the chores on a

midwestern farm, namely milking the small herd of dairy cows by hand and using a manual hand-crank

separator to make cream and butter for the family. A task that one day resulted in a broken finger based

on a brother’s dare!

She started school in the small country schoolhouse of Forest Grove, later attending Oakley High School

where she was a cheerleader and active in various high school activities and civic organizations. After

graduating with the Class of 1955, she moved to Salina, Kansas, where she attended and received her

associates degree from Wesleyan Business College.

Val moved to Denver, Colorado, in 1962 with her dear sister, Darlene. She took employ as an executive

assistant first with, Martin Marietta, and later with Samsonite. She married in 1966 and gave birth to the

light-of-her-life, Koka Dalene Devers. She later divorced and in 1986 moved to Memphis, Tennessee where she worked as a loan officer at the First Tennessee Bank and often visited her daughter who was now attending school at Purdue University. In 1990 she relocated to Vancouver, Washington near her sister and growing nephews and niece. While there, Val managed the Vancouver Plaza Theatre, making friends with many young employees and also feeding Val’s young-at-heart spirit that infused her life and all those around her. In 1998 Val relocated to Phoenix, Arizona. She found employment by chance after frequenting the AMC Movie Theatres as movies were indeed one of her many pastimes. She was asked to accept a managerial position, as all the kids who worked there listened to her and loved her, but she never accepted to position. She also volunteered frequently at the St. Peter Indian Catholic Mission in Bapchule, Arizona. She saw her daughter marry in 2008 and in 2016 Val relocated to Las Vegas, Nevada where she could beclose to Koka and her dear son-in-law, Johnny. She volunteered at Spring Mountain Ranch State Park and also at Summerlin Hospital. Val regularly attended Mountain View Presbyterian Church where she demanded the Pastor add communion to the Sunday service to honor Val’s Catholic roots. Not only did Val live in many places throughout her life, but she also traveled frequently. She had an adventurous and generous soul, going as far as Tokyo, Japan to help a friend settle into their life

oversees. She would rendezvous with her sister, her brothers, and friends in places across the country

including Florida, North Carolina, New England, throughout the Midwest, California, and Hawai’i. Val

would make countless friends throughout her travels; Val never knew a stranger. Val was a charismatic woman of many talents. In her youth, Val teamed with her older brother, Virgil, where they competed in the Jitterbug in many competitions in Kansas in the early 1950s. As a young adult she became an Arthur Murry dance instructor in both Salina, Kansas and Denver, Colorado. Val was an expert bowler and enjoyed winning many local bowling league titles in the Denver area.

Val loved sports, especially college football! You could not call her on a Saturday during the football

season and expect her to answer, or get her out of the house! She would spend her Saturdays in fall

watching games and cheering her favorite teams, notably Kansas State, Purdue and of course, Notre

Dame. She got to see her Fighting Irish one time, at Purdue, where she cried like a baby watching “her

boys” take the field. She attended a home Raiders game with her son-in-law as recently as late

September. Val touched many people throughout her life. Val was a second mother to many and a trusted confidant to her close few. Val brightened everyone’s day that she greeted with a boisterous “Hey, Baby!”. She would walk into a room and own it, both with her energy, and her voice. She could hold a crowd’s

attention, first with her farm whistle, followed by an original toast, or joke. She loved the attention and

she loved making people laugh. Val is survived by her former husband, Dr. Darrell Devers of Beaver, Oklahoma; their daughter, “Koka” Dalene Devers Kivett (husband, John “Johnny” Kivett), and their two four-legged children, Dexter and

Fergie of Las Vegas, Nevada. Val is also survived by brothers Alvin (Betty), niece Bonnie, nephew Bryan

(Mary), nephew Kenny; Gilbert Hecker, niece Jackie Postier (Lowel), nephews Robert and Douglas,

nieces Karla Hecker, Lori Hecker Denning (Joe), Sara Hecker VanEaton (Paul), brother-in-law Chet

Kitendaugh, niece Paula Kitendaugh (Paul), nephews Ed (Dania) and Ryan Kitendaugh , and many more

loving cousins, relatives and dear friends.

Val was preceded in death by her parents, her sister, Darlene Hecker Kitendaugh, two brothers, Virgil

(Vonda) and Jimmy (Noralee); nephews Ranny Joe and Kirk Hecker; sisters-in-law Karen, Gilbert’s wife,

and Jimmy’s wife, Noralee.

Special heartfelt thank you to Val’s friend Dr. Debbie Reisen who was with Val a majority of the time

while she was in the hospital, and hospice. Her loving energy prevailed in every visit. Also, David Dendy,

Pastor of Mountain View Presbyterian, who visited Val numerous times and gave her peace and love

during her final weeks.

A Celebration of Life is being planned for Saturday, April 8, 2023, in Las Vegas, Nevada.