Gladys J. "Josie" Varela
Burial Details
Obituaries
Grand Junction Daily Sentinel page 8A Death Notice - February 13, 2017
Gladys J. “Josie” Varela, 20, Olathe, died Feb. 6, 2017, in Delta County. Services will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Delta. Interment will follow at the Olathe Cemetery.She was a student at Colorado Mesa University.She is survived her mother, Michelle of Olathe; her father, Victor H. Varela Mariman of Olathe; three brothers, Frank Luis Varela Ruiz, Victor Julian Varela Martinez, and Will Ryder Varela Mar-tinez; one sister, Maya Francisca Varela Martinez; and numerous grandparents and great-grandparents.
Grand Junction Daily Sentinel page 6 A Obituary - February 14, 2017
Gladys Josephine Varela,
better known as “Josie
Varela”, a resident of Olathe,
Colorado, lost her life in a
tragic car accident in Delta
County on the evening of
February 6, 2017, while
commuting home from school
at CMU. Her father, Victor H.
Varela Mariman, was by her side.
Funeral services will be held at 2:00 p.m., Wednesday,
February 15, 2017 at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints in Delta, Colorado with Bishop Joel Butzin and Brother
Chad Harris, conducting. Interment will follow at Olathe
Cemetery in Olathe, Colorado.
Josie was born in Glenwood Springs, Colorado on February 9,
1997, to Chilean citizen, Victor H. Varela and American citizen,
Michelle C. Martinez. When she was eight months old, she
moved to Chile with her parents and spent nearly four years
there, gaining a little brother, Victor Julian Varela, in 1999. The
family worked hard, living a very rugged, rural lifestyle, but
eventually decided to move back to the States in 2001.
Josie was homeschooled her whole life…giving her plenty of
time to explore and refine her creative ideas. She started playing
the violin just shortly before her sixth birthday and has been
playing ever since. At the time of her passing, she was a junior
at CMU studying music performance and also considering how
to fit in a fine arts degree. All in all, she was a true artist. When
not playing violin, painting, reading or spending time with her
family, she nearly always had a pencil in her hand as she
sketched out illustrations for one of the many novels she was
writing.
She had a great love for nature, sunsets, mountains, cats,
children and martial arts. But mostly, she enjoyed visiting and
laughing with her family.
She will be sorely missed by all who knew her. Her family
would like to express deep gratitude to all who have mentored
and contributed to her personal growth and development. She
was a dear friend, daughter, sister, granddaughter, niece and
aunt. Her life was spent in service to her family and friends. She
loved Heavenly Father and her Savior, Jesus Christ. She always
put others first and was always willing to help with whatever
was needed.
She is survived by her mother, father and four siblings, Frank
Luis Varela Ruiz (age 22), Victor Julian Varela Martinez (age
17), Maya Francisca Varela Martinez (age 9) and Will Ryder
Varela Martinez (age 18 months). She has three living greatgrandparents,
four grandparents, numerous uncles, aunts and
cousins on both sides of her family.
Arrangements are under the care and direction of Taylor
Funeral Service and Crematory.
View the internet obituary and sign the online guest registry at
www.taylorfuneralservice.com.
