Charlene Joyce (Arnold) Horner, age 76, passed away peacefully on Wednesday February 26, 2020 in Fort Collins, CO after a 5 year struggle with Frontotemporal Dementia. She was born on October 16, 1943 in Ord, Nebraska, the daughter of the Floyd Washington Arnold and Viola May Cochran Arnold. Charlene grew up in Ord, Nebraska with her brothers Roger, Don, and Harold and her sisters Shirley and Jeannie. She graduated from Ord High School 1963.
Charlene moved to Lincoln where she met her husband, Ken Horner while working at Skyline Dairy. They married on March 10, 1967 in Lincoln, Nebraska, sharing 53 years of their life together. There they raised their two daughters, Jackie and Koren mostly in Lincoln that included 4 years in the Chicago area. The next move was from Lincoln to Florida for 4 years, and then Kansas for 8 years. After her grandchildren were born she vowed to never miss a birthday or a holiday so she traveled many miles from Kansas to Fort Collins before finally moving in 2005.
Charlene held several positions, a para aide in the school system, a secretary with the State Department of Health in Lincoln, as a secretary in Florida and at Spring Hill High School in Kansas. She most recently worked in the kitchen at McGraw, Elementary. She retired in 2016. She loved to be around children of all ages.
Square dancing was a past time for Ken and Charlene in Lincoln and she made all of the dresses and Kens shirts to match. After moving to Fort Collins Charlene and Ken took many cruises and traveled to places like Europe, Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, Mexico and many places in the states. She loved baking Christmas Cookies every year, taking Pilates classes and participating in 5/10 K walk/run’s with Ken and sometimes her daughter Jackie.
Charlene is survived by her loving and devoted husband Kenneth Eugene; daughter Jackie (Kevin) King of Fort Collins, CO and daughter Koren (Brad) Settell of Aurora, CO. Three grand-children Dylan Ryan, Ashlyn McKenna and Amber Lynn (Jackie) and three step grand-children Bob, Jessica and Nikk (Koren). She also leaves behind her siblings Roger, Donald, Harold, and Jeannie as well as a multitude of nephews and nieces. Charlene was preceded in death by her parents Floyd and Viola Arnold and her sister Shirley Arnold Nelson Obermiller.
Funeral service will be held on Saturday, March 7, 2020 at 1:00 PM at Lincoln Memorial Funeral Home, 6800 South 14th Street, Lincoln, NE 68512. lincolnfh.com.
In lieu of flowers, Memorials are suggested to the Dementia-Friendly Communities of Northern Colorado, 1540 Main St. Suite 218/231, Windsor, CO 80550, DFCNoCO.org. This organization helps educate families and businesses exposed to loved ones and customers with Dementia.
