Karen Koso

Karen Lee (Snell) Koso was a proud mother to two sons, two daughters-in-law, two granddaughters and two grandsons. She was a loving sister, sister-in-law, friend, lover of dogs (especially Scottish Terriers), avid house remodeler, decorator and flower gardener, seeker of perfect margaritas, continuous mystery novel reader, and canasta player. Although never known for her chef abilities, she could decorate a kitchen so beautifully that you wouldn't want to mess it up with cooking anyway... Karen, also known as Missy, was born on September 23, 1940 in Hays, Kansas, the daughter of Lillian Mae Krieger and Ernest Boone Snell. As her father worked in the oil and gas industry, she and her sister, Ernestine Kay (Snell) Kingelin moved many times and attending many schools. Karen graduated from Littleton High School in Littleton, Colorado in 1958. She attended the University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma for approximately two years before transferring and graduating from the University of Denver, Denver, Colorado in 1962. In 1965 she married Kenneth Koso with a son, Kyle, born in 1966 and a son, Kip, born in 1968. After 11 years, the marriage ended in divorce. Karen worked for several oil and gas companies throughout her career including International Oil & Gas Inc. in Denver, Consolidated Oil & Gas Inc. in Denver, Petro-Lewis in Denver, Apache Corporation in Houston, and Seagull Energy Corporation in Houston. She has worked for M3 Midstream LLC located in Durango since 2006. A company that became family. Survivors include sons Kyle Koso (Carolyn Bishop) of Loveland, Colorado and Kip Koso (Jeanine Justice) of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, granddaughters Cameron Justice Koso and Lillian Bishop Koso, grandsons Kole Patrick Lavelle and Aaron Koso, sister Kay Kingelin (Rick) of Bullard, Texas and several cousins. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Boys and Girls Club of Durango or the La Plata County Humane Society.