She made the journey home to Heaven on June 28, 2021.
Valerie was a dedicated loving wife to Mark William Sullivan and a devoted loving mother to O’Ryan Liam Sullivan and Beatrice Mary-Kathryn Sullivan.
Valerie was the daughter of William Clapper and Dawn Burke Clapper.
Valerie was sister To Pat Clapper, Vicki Elias, Vonda Hall, and Verlene Clapper-Park.
Valerie grew up in many places in the Pacific Northwest, where her Father was a welder who worked on damns and missile sites. Later the family moved to Texas when Valerie was a teenager. She attended Robert E Lee High School in Houston. During those years Valerie showed interest in art, sewing and she participated in track for her school team.
Valerie moved to Los Angeles in the late 1980’s and attended Santa Monica Community College where she took art classes. Valerie also worked for several years as a receptionist with Ernst and Young Accounting Firm. It was there that she met her husband Mark who was a courier who would deliver packages to her desk. That was in 1991 and they have been inseparable since then. Throughout their married life they lived in many places, first in Los Angeles where their son O’Ryan was born. Then moving to Texas to be with Valerie’s family, then moving to Iowa to be near Mark’s family. Their daughter Beatrice was born in Iowa and the family lived many happy years in the small town of Troy Mills IA, later moving to Ames IA while her husband studied engineering. After that they moved to Colorado, first living in Grand Junction, then moving to Longmont and finally they moved into their brand new dream home in Berthoud. Most recently Valerie was a baker for the south Longmont Safeway.
Valerie was an expert quilter, and had many artistic talents; she was a sewer, artist, and writer. She also home schooled her children and created a warm and loving home for her family in all the places they lived. At their new home in Berthoud Valerie created a beautiful yard with her love of gardening.
She was a woman of great faith and a member of the Calvary Chapel Longmont, where she belonged to the women’s bible study group. She had many many friends.
In recent years Valerie and her daughter, Beatrice teamed up to be Mary Kay Consultants and really enjoyed working together.
Valerie fought a long struggle against cancer that unfortunately would never fully go away. She made many brave and difficult choices and she is now finally free and at peace. We miss her so much and know that we will have a joyful reunion in Heaven.
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