Patricia Louise Talley

On Saturday, November 2, 2024, Patricia Louise Talley, 81, of Fort Collins, CO, peacefully passed away. Under the care of hospice and her nurses at Gardens Care in Evans, CO, her body was able to free her beautiful soul to be reunited with her son Johnny who she had lost 27 years ago.

As a downtown business owner for decades, she witnessed the growth of Fort Collins and was an integral part of the fun and celebration that Fort Collins is known for. Toy Dungeon and Life of the Party were icons of the budding downtown culture long before 'Old Town' was even a thought. She was an active participant and leader of the Downtown Business Association and the Soroptimist Club and became friends with many other business owners. She enjoyed going out with her friends and family especially to The Rio Grande where she enjoyed chips, salsa, and a couple of margaritas.

Born in Chicago, IL, she lived there until her parents moved the family to Colorado Springs in the early 1950's. She graduated from Cheyenne Mountain High School in 1961 and worked for years as a secretary at a local bank. She met Roger Kress Talley, who worked at Colorado Natural Gas, and they married on December 27, 1965. They had three children, Amy, Mike, and John, and then moved for Roger's employment to Bartlesville, OK. After the crash of the oil market, Patricia and Roger moved to Fort Collins in 1978 and got divorced shortly thereafter.

She started Toy Dungeon at 133 S College Avenue with the help of her father, Henry, because he knew the business from owning Levine's in Colorado Springs for many years. Henry and Pat then saw a need for a party store and opened a second store downtown, Life of the Party. She ran the stores with the help of many talented people, expanding the party store and eventually moving it from College Avenue to Mountain Ave because she always wanted to remain part of the downtown scene she helped create.

She was an avid reader and lover of movies, but Rock and Roll music was always her first love. Her all-time favorite was Elvis, but she also loved Chubby Checker, Fats Domino, Chuck Berry and many others as evidenced by her extensive record collection. In lieu of gifts or remembrances, please put your favorite record on high volume and recall times of laughter and joy that you had with the Life of the Party, Pat.

She was preceded in death by her son, John Talley (1973-1997), her father, Henry Novak (1914-1998), and her mother Vera Novak (1918-2002).

She is survived by Amy Lovell (John), her daughter, of Ault, CO, Mike Talley (Santhe), her older son, of Madison, AL, Henry Novak, JR, her older brother, of Austin, TX, four grandsons; Ian, Jefferson, Connor, and Zachary, and one granddaughter, Elizabeth.

A private graveside service will be held at Grandview Cemetery. The memorial service will be held 12 pm, Monday, November 18, 2024 in the chapel at First United Methodist Church, 1005 Stover, Ft. Collins.

A full obituary will be posted soon.