Valerie A. Van Meter

Date of Death: March 31, 2016

Amherst Chapel

1600 Amherst Street

Winchester, VA 22601

Friday 4/8, 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Celebration of Life

Valerie Ann Van Meter, 72, of Star Tannery, Virginia, died Thursday, March 31, 2016, at her home.

Mrs. Van Meter was born in 1944, in Maryland, the daughter of the late Valerie and James B. MacNees. Mrs. Van Meter was a reporter with the Winchester Star serving for 15 years and a reporter/editor with the Clarke County Courier for 19 years. She enjoyed her horses, gardening and reading books. Her greatest joy in life was spending time on her farm and being with her family.

She married Robert Hugh Van Meter on December 12, 1972, in Maryland. He preceded her in death on December 10, 2012.

Surviving are her sons, Robert Van Meter and wife, Tina, William Yomans, Barry Van Meter and wife, Jessica; 6 grandchildren; many wonderful, loving friends and her horses.

A Celebration of life will be held on Friday, April 8, 2016, from 6:00-8:00 PM at Omps Funeral Home, Amherst Chapel.

Memorial contributions in memory of Valerie may be sent to Red Cloud Indian School, 100 Mission Drive, Pine Ridge, South Dakota, 57770 or St. Joseph’s Indian School, P.O. Box 300, Chamberlain, South Dakota, 57325-0300.

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Valerie Ann Van Meter, 72, of Star Tannery, Virginia, died Thursday, March 31, 2016, at her home. Mrs. Van Meter was born in 1944, in Maryland, the daughter of the late Valerie and James B. MacNees. Mrs. Van Meter was a reporter with the Winchester Star serving for 15 years and a reporter/editor with the …
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for Val: A Sky Full of Horses I looked over there and I saw twelve black horses toward the west, where the sun goes down… Then they showed me twelve white horses [in the north]… Then I turned around toward the east… I saw twelve head of horses, all sorrels. Then I turned to… the south, and saw twelve head of buckskin horses. These horses had horns… As they stood, the bay horse looked to the west and neighed. I looked over there and saw great clouds of horses in all colors and they all neighed back to this horse and it sounded like thunder… The bay horse said to me, ‘Behold them, your horses come dancing.’ I looked around and saw millions of horses circling around me—a sky full of horses… —Black Elk (Oglala Lakota), 1932

What a dear kind and loving person Val was. She was an inspiration to me and a good friend. Our love of horses and children brought us together and I will cherish the conversations we had. I will miss her terribly and my sympathy goes out to her family and other friends. Good bye sweet lady until we meet again to ride in that heavenly land.

I'm honored to have known Val for nearly 40 years. She was a great friend as well as mentor and inspiration to me and all that knew her. She will be greatly missed.

Just a sincere, genuine lady. I have known Val for over 35 years, first when she interviewed me for stories, then as a good friend as our interviews over the years grew more into conversations about our families, friends, and life. Always polite, always gently probing for the substance of the story, always conscious of figuring out how to explain it so it would be understood by her readers. She has become part of the fabric of my life. I will miss her forthright manner, her friendship, her ever present bandana.

I remember all the great weekend's we had several years ago, riding in the parades and lessons at her house with Sylvia. She was a wonderful human being. She will be greatly missed by all who knew her. Condolences to her entire family.

Peace of mind is a call away. We're here when you need us most.

Val was a great believer in youth and horses. She enjoyed covering articles of my 4-H kids and their horses. We always enjoyed when she'd bring the kids to compete in lead line at our county fair Horse Show. She always had a smile, a good suggestion or some funny thing to say. She will be greatly missed. But we all can cherish our wonderful memories. Ride on Val !!!

For many years Val was the neighbor you never knew was there to her community. A couple of years ago she got a young German Shepherd named Moses. He became the official greeter on Sunday morning (and any other time people came) to "his" church. From the tiniest child to the oldest adult he was there to greet them, and they in turn greeted him back with no fear, but more love than you can imagine. But when Val would call he was gone in a heartbeat. Her glorious animal was a reflection of her gentleness and kindness.

Val was a terrific person -- kind, generous, understanding. She was a great journalist and never stopped writing and covering the community. We will all miss her so much. I value the time I worked with her at The Winchester Star. We had a great relationship and respected one another. My heart is heavy but my thoughts of her are full of love and friendship.

So sorry for your loss. Val was such a lovely lady. I met her when I first moved here from Alexandria almost 40 years ago. She was known and read by so many people in the community. She will b missed.

Val was known locally and statewide in the journalism trade as an outstanding trusted news reporter of “the complete story,” and privately as a marvelous caretaker of her family, horse farm and animal friends. She lived life to the fullest, loved people, treated everyone fairly, rarely complained, and was truly one of God’s “great souls.” Requiescat in pace et in amore,” dear lady (Isaiah 57:2). We celebrate and rejoice in the countless blessings you brought to all who knew you.

Such a pleasant lady! I'll miss our library chats and her town news articles. She would often stop by the library to pick up reading material before heading off to cover an evening meeting in the building. She will be missed.

Please accept our deepest condolences for your family's loss.