Retiring teacher, coach urges Colony grads to ‘find their 68’
By Jeremiah Bartz Frontiersman.com A football coach using a hockey reference as the centerpiece for his keynote address may
Darla Velador
2/18/1998-4/23/2021
Darla was born in Anchorage, Alaska, to Neelie Lythgoe and grew up in the small town of Big Lake, Alaska. There she made close friends she would keep throughout her lifetime. She was a young mother and had her son Ivan before graduating from Burchell High School in 2016.
She went on to achieve her certification as a massage therapist at Alaska Career College. She had a love of art, music, animals, and was a humanitarian. Cooking, entertaining, singing and writing music, comedy, her son, her boyfriend Seth Masterson, and her rescue dog Max were some of her favorite things. She spent time in Las Vegas, Nevada, and Gainesville, Florida, making many friends and good memories.
Sadly, she left this world prematurely on the afternoon of April 23rd, 2021, alongside her best buddy Max.
She is survived by her mother, Neelie Lythgoe; her sisters, Kjera O’Kelley (Matt) and Morgan Wood (Cody); brother, Dylan O’Dell; son, Ivan Velador; maternal grandparents, Lynn and Marcia Lythgoe; aunt, Dena Lythgoe Hutchinson (Ian); uncles, Steven Lythgoe And Lynn Lythgoe III; and the many cousins, nieces, nephews, and people who loved her.
Her memorial service will be held at Janssen’s Mat-Su Funeral Home on Saturday, May 22nd at 3:00 pm, and her celebration of life will follow the service.
Darla was one of a kind and left the world a better place. She will be deeply missed.