L.Juanita Tortella

Juanita “Nita” Tortella was born November 30, 1930 in Vilas, Colorado on the family farm to Roscoe and Rose Konkel. She departed this life on September 22, 2016, in Amarillo, TX at the age of 85. She attended Vilas schools and graduated in 1949. She married W.T. (Whimp) Hughes in November, 1949. To this union a son Wayland Tim was born on May 16, 1956. In 1957 she moved to Amarillo, Texas and began a life- long career in the beauty salon business, retiring in 2006. She married S.S. (Tort) Tortella on Dec. 4, 1964 and to this union a family was created with the adoption of Wayland Tim, daughter Debbie (Tortella) and birth of Shawn Stephen on Sep 16, 1967. She was a member of Hillside Christian Church in Amarillo. In 1992 she married B.C. (Junior) Dapron in Amarillo. “Nita” loved to travel and her favorite places always included a spot with a beach, so it was no surprise when she sold the family home on Bell Ave. and moved into a condo with a pond. It was here that she met a very special friend Ralph Hill, the two of them could always be found early in the morning enjoying coffee at Ralph’s patio. Following Ralph’s death, Nita moved into an apartment near her son Shawn in Amarillo in September of 2015. Nita is survived by sons Tim Tortella, Shawn & Janice Tortella, daughter Debbie Tortella Beyer all of Amarillo; grandsons: Ty, Jayden, Chad, Nicholas, Lance, Toby, Otto, and Arlo. Niece Twila and Steve Westphal of Temple, Texas; Jackie Whittier, and was a special “Granny T” to Natalie, Dirk & Deitrich Tailford and Chase, Amanda & Ella Whittier, of Dallas, Texas. She was preceded in death by her parents, husbands W.T. (Whimp) Hughes, S.S. (Tort) Tortella & B.C. Dapron, sister Ada Mae, grandson Justin Tortella, niece Dixie Self Kotz, nephew Danny Self, special friends Ralph Hill, Fran Weathers, and Don Whittier.In Lieu of flowers donations may be made to Baca County Hospice, 373 East 10th Ave. Springfield, CO 81073