On Thursday, July 21, 2022, Valerie Carmen Berch, loving wife and mother and grandmother, passed away at age 76. Valerie was born on October 24, 1945, in Groton, Connecticut to Loren E. and Mercedes C. Hurley. Although she held numerous jobs throughout her life, she was particularly proud of her work in pharmacovigilance at AstraZeneca and organizing scientific conferences and board meetings at AOAC International. She loved gardening, cooking, and working around the house. An avid viewer of home, garden, and cooking TV channels and reader of such magazines, she possessed both a deep and wide-ranging knowledge of these topics. She was considered by her family members and close friends as being strong, resilient, and stellar classy. She also had a quick wit and was a real stickler for using correct grammar. Most importantly, she was a very loving wife and mother and a truly supportive friend.

In addition to raising her biological daughter and having two grandchildren, she was especially loved and admired by her three "bonus" children. She is survived by her husband, Dan, her daughter, Sondra (& Mike) Kehne, her grandchildren, Evan and Zoey Hoover and bonus grandson Eyan Coley, and her bonus children, Randa (& Sammy) Samson, Sarah (& John) DiBisceglie, and Darren Berch, as well as her other bonus grandchildren. Baldwin Brothers Funeral & Cremation Society, Tavares, FL, will be assisting the family with the arrangements, which are private.