Lanette Beryl Collins

Lanette Beryl Collins was taken from her family suddenly on September 11, 2021, by a reckless driver crossing into her lane of traffic and hitting her vehicle in rural Douglas County, Colorado. Lanette was on her way home from Durango, where she was working as a COVID-19 vaccinator.

Lanette was born in Williston, North Dakota, and was the seventh of eight children born to Persis (Pinky) and Charles J. (Choppy) Nehring. She attended grade school at Round Prairie Elementary School and went on to attend Williston High School. After high school, Lanette enlisted in the Army where she served as a lineman and diesel mechanic for three years at Fort Riley in the 1st Infantry Division (Big Red One), which is the same unit in which her son, James Skurupey, would later serve. After her discharge from the regular Army, Lanette served in the Army National Guard for six years. Following in the footsteps of her mother who served as a nurse, Lanette attended nursing school at UND Williston Center where she received her LPN. She went on to work in various nursing positions throughout her lifetime. Her greatest joy as a nurse was building personal relationships and getting to know those she was caring for. At the time of her death, Lanette was working as a contract nurse administering COVID-19 shots.

In October of 1980, Lanette married Brian Skurupey. They made their home in Williston, North Dakota, where their children, James and Leigh Ann, were born. Lanette later moved to Parker, Colorado, where she married John Collins on July 8, 1986. Together they had one son, Jared.

Lanette was preceded in death by her parents, Pinky and Choppy Nehring, her brothers, Girard and Loran Nehring, her nephew, Clinton Nehring, her niece, Ann Collins, and her nephew, Sean Collins, and two great nieces, Lexi and Clara Leach.

Lanette is survived by her husband of 35 years, John Collins, her children, James Skurupey, Leigh Ann Skurupey, and Jared and his wife Catherine Collins, as well as the absolute lights of her life, her grandchildren, Chance J. and Cassidy Beryl Collins. She also leaves behind 23 nieces and nephews, 28 grandnieces and grandnephews, and 4 great grandnieces.

Lanette had a multitude of interests and hobbies throughout her life. She was a talented seamstress, with a skill level, sewing machine, fabric, and thread collection of which most seamstresses can only dream. Her cookies (particularly her elephant ears), intricately themed birthday cakes, and brown sugar brownies were delicious, as she was well-known for her baking skills in her family and her community. Driving ponies was also Lanette’s passion, and she had an impressive collection of harnesses, carts, and wagons from which to choose. Shooting her 9 mm with her husband, John, was something she truly loved. Lanette loved her dogs and was rarely seen without one of them by her side. These special furry friends will definitely miss their beloved Lanette. Shopping was another favorite pastime for Lanette, as she delighted in finding new and interesting things to purchase. Some would even say she was a “pro-level shopper.”

Lanette was an avid reader her whole life, devouring books by the score. She loved to try new things, and paddle boarding, roller skating, and hiking were her latest pursuits. Lanette often used a GoPro to capture her paddle boarding experiences with her new friends in Durango and loved every minute of it.

Lanette’s artistic abilities shined in many ways. Besides painting, she expressed her creativity through her personal style and fashion. Lanette loved fancy cowboy boots and shiny jewelry. She also liked to dye her hair new and exotic colors and braid it in intricate ways. Her fingernails were always beautifully painted in the most intricate designs and colors. Lanette also had a creative eye when crafting and designing incredibly beautiful clothes. One of her most treasured items is a gorgeous leather red, white, and blue dress she designed and handcrafted for her daughter, Leigh Ann, while she was a rodeo queen.

Lanette was very patriotic, participating in events supporting veterans whenever she could. She admired veterans and loved to honor her nephew, Sean Collins, who was killed in Afghanistan. Lanette even tattooed Sean’s dog tags on her arm in his memory.

Raising awareness for breast cancer was another of Lanette’s passions, and she did everything she could to further this important issue. She liked to dye her hair pink during breast cancer awareness month in honor of her niece, Ann Collins, and her Aunt Beryl Girard who were lost to breast cancer. She also tattooed the pink breast cancer ribbon on her wrist with their two names below it in their memory.

Lanette viewed strangers as “friends she had never met” and was incredibly selfless in the way she lived her life. She would talk to anyone about anything at any time and was the first person who would drop everything whenever she learned that someone needed help. In fact, Lanette was a “mother figure” to so many people in so many ways. However, on the flip side of things, Lanette possessed the “Nehring” trait of “loving to argue,” often “telling it exactly how it was,” likely lacking a filter, but always with good intention.

Arrangements for Lanette’s celebration of life are being made by her family to be held at the Elbert County Fairgrounds, in Kiowa, Colorado, on Sunday, September 26, 2021, at 3:00 PM. Signs will direct families to the Ag Building, north of the arenas. Interment will be in North Dakota at a date to be arranged. Olinger Andrews Caldwell Gibson Funeral home is handling cremation arrangements. In lieu of sending flowers or plants to Lanette’s service, donations can be made to support her passion for breast cancer awareness through Leigh Ann Skurupey’s Venmo account @ LeighAnn-Skurupey.