Darlene Campos Mills

Grand Junction/Pueblo, CO Darlene Campos Mills, a loved and devoted wife, mother, step-mom, grandmother, and passionate advocate, passed away peacefully on Saturday, October 11, 2025, in Grand Junction, Colorado, due to complications from a cardiac condition. She was 74. She lived in Grand Junction for over 30 years. Darlene was born on February 25, 1951, in Rock Springs, Wyoming, to Chris and Marie Campos. She grew up in the Bessemer area of Pueblo, CO, and graduated from Pueblo Central High School in the class of 1969, where she was in the honor society and student council. She was active in Girls Cabinet and ROTC. Darlene was a woman of strong character and impressive professional achievement. She worked in the collection department at Ametek, and was a top performer winning company awards. She also had a successful career with Qwest (Mountain Bell) for 30 years as a claims manager. She was deeply committed to community service, serving as a Board Member for Girl Scouts in Grand Junction and as a Girl Scout Leader in Pueblo, As well as a campaign advocate for the City Council in Pueblo and as a Board Member for Planned Parenthood in Grand Junction. Independent and comfortable with public speaking, Darlene possessed a vibrant personality and was passionate about her political and cultural views. She had a great sense of humor and had a knack for creating memorable nicknames for everyone she met. She enjoyed an active life, traveling, and spending time fishing and hunting with her husband, kids and grandchildren. As a young woman, she enjoyed roller skating and skiing, driving in the mountains in her black 300 ZX with the T-tops off. She loved bowling, watching scary movies with her husband and son, shopping with her sisters and daughters, and attending Denver Broncos games with her brother and children. Her favorite holidays were Halloween and Christmas, and she was a longtime fan of Country and Motown music. Darlene is survived by her loving husband, Jeffrey T. Mills for over 35 years; her children, Ursula Duran (Curtis Hoffman) of Pueblo West, CO, and Isaac Duran Jr. (Gretchen) of Fort Collins, CO; and her stepchildren, John Mills (Cindy), Sarah Mills (Brian Hosterman), both of Grand Junction, CO, Melanie (James) Christensen and daughter in law Rhonda Mills of Colorado Springs, CO, and Jeffery C. Mills (Jessica Mace) of Magnolia, TX. and 2 great-children. She leaves behind her siblings, Chris Campos of Pueblo, CO, Connie Campos of Denver, CO, and Bonnie Campos (Jim Lopez) of Rockville, MD. She was the beloved grandmother to Shelby (Matt Kehoe), Lorrena (Miles Pappas), Delphina and Aurelia Duran, Mariah, Rochelle, Destiny, Trinity, Ally, Raylee, Cameo and Andrew Mills. She also leaves behind numerous nieces and nephews, including Nina (James) Finkeldei, Chris (Teresa) Campos, Andrea (Michael) Altuner, Reece (Anduriel Widmark) Salinas, Orlando (Christiana Horn) Lopez, and Martina (John “Chris”) Hoover. Darlene was preceded in death by her parents, Chris and Marie Campos; sister, Theresa Campos; sister in-law Elizabeth Campos; and her stepson, Shawn Mills.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Darlene's memory to the Parkinson's Foundation https://co-parkinson.org/ or Planned Parenthood tax deductible donation to https://www.weareplannedparenthood.org or Girl Scouts of Colorado https://secure.qgiv.com/for/girlscoutsofcolorado