Loretta Jane Reitz

Light refreshments will follow the ceremony, location TBA. A private memorial will be held for her immediate family and close friends on Saturday, July 13. Loretta, who passed away at her home in Colorado on November 29, 2023, will forever be in our hearts. Instead of providing flowers, we ask that you donate to the Dumb Friends League of Denver, Loretta’s favorite nonprofit organization for homeless pets.

Loretta Jane (Hardin) Reitz May 10, 1935-November 29, 2023 Loretta Jane (Hardin) Reitz, 88, passed away on November 29, 2023, at her home in Colorado from multiple health complications. A Celebration of Life will be planned for a later date in the spring.

Loretta was born to Max and Emily Hardin on May 10, 1935, in Scottsbluff, Neb. She attended Haig Public School in Mitchell, Neb., where she was a superstar basketball player, and graduated from Scottsbluff High School in 1953.

Loretta began working as a teenager at Woolworths in Scottsbluff and worked there for several years. In 1954, Loretta married Rowland Lynch and together they had four children Greg, Tanya, Kim, and Kristi. In 1969, Loretta married LeRoy Reitz. Avid sports fans, Loretta, Roy, and her children spent many hours playing softball and baseball at Cleveland Field in Scottsbluff.

She worked at Singer Sewing Company and Cannon Brother's Ford in Scottsbluff before moving to Denver, Colo., in 1986, where she worked at Mile High Honda/Acura as a cashier. Working until the age of 84, Loretta was very social and loved being around people. When she began having health issues and discovered she had congestive heart failure, she was forced to quit working, much to her disappointment.

Loretta was a great cook and excellent seamstress, sewing tiny Barbie clothes and beautiful prom and wedding dresses for her daughters. She loved the Nebraska Cornhuskers, gardening, and all animals. She adopted several feral cats, feeding them daily, and finally befriending two kittens by bringing them into her home as pets, which brought her much happiness during her illness.

Loretta is survived by a son, Greg (Cherie) Lynch; daughters, Kim (Tim) Twombly and Kristi (Dan) Thomas; and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by Max and Emily Hardin (parents); Don Hardin (brother); Joyce Piffner (sister); Memory Trout (sister); Tanya Fix (daughter); LeRoy Reitz (husband); Kassandra Twombly (granddaughter); and Cheryl Lynch (daughter-in-law).

Fond memories and messages of sympathy may be shared at www.dugankramer.com for the family