Jan Lee Ratliff
10.20.26
Janet (Jan) Lee Ratliff was born May 21, 1950 in Colorado Springs to Gene and Mary Ratliff, the middle daughter with an older sister Kay and younger sister Sharon. Jan died peacefully at home on October 20, 2026, after a valiant journey with multiple health challenges including Parkinson’s disease.
Jan grew up just outside Limon, Colorado. She became a mom at 18 when daughter Connie was born, followed by son Charles and later by daughter Sarah. Jan attended business college and her first career involved a variety of jobs in accounting and finance in Colorado, Hawaii, and California. In 1988 she met her life partner Jan Everhart. They moved to Fresno, California where Jan attended nursing school at California State University Fresno, graduating top of her class with her BSN in 1995. Jan was a trauma nurse in level one trauma centers in Fresno and Denver, later shifting to home health and hospice when “the Jans” moved to Iowa in 2003. Jan remodeled an old farmhouse, raised sheep, and grew fruit and vegetables in the fertile Iowa soil. After a back injury ended her nursing career, Jan focused on the arts, building furniture and later establishing herself as a potter. In 2009 after more than 20 years together, Jan married her life partner in a legal ceremony in Iowa. She loved spending time with family and friends (especially her grandchildren), creating functional pottery, fishing at the Spanish Peaks cabin, and supporting friends with her fierce loyalty and irreverent humor. Jan was a lifelong United Methodist and most recently a member of First United Methodist Church in Trinidad. Jan is survived by her spouse, Jan Everhart; by her children Connie Stone, Charles Mannis, and Sarah Ratliff Burgess, their spouses, children and grandchildren, along with many friends. She was predeceased by her parents and sisters and foster son.
A celebration of life service will be held Saturday, November 14, 1:00 p.m. at First United Methodist Church, 216 Broom Street, Trinidad, Colorado. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be directed to the Michael J. Fox Parkinson’s Foundation, the Reconciling Ministries Network of the United Methodist Church, or the charity of the donor’s choice.