Darlene Rose Kocherhans, 83, Rapid City, died Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014 at Regional Health’s Hospice House of natural causes. She was born to Samuel R. and Ada Mae (Schweigman) DeCory on March 13, 1931 at Rosebud Hospital. They later moved to St Francis in 1932. When she was 10 years old, the family moved to Rapid City. In 1947, Darlene was named Miss Black Hills. She was chosen as Snow Queen of South Dakota in 1948. On April 29, 1950 Darlene married SSGT Joseph Gerald ‘Jerry’ Kocherhans of San Diego, CA while he was stationed at Ellsworth Air Force Base. They had two sons; Joseph Kim was born August 5, 1952 at Ellsworth. Shortly after, they moved to San Diego, CA where their second son, Steve Allen was born on March 26, 1954. The family lived in San Diego for forty years and retired back ‘home’ in Rapid City in January 1992. Darlene is survived by her husband J.G. ‘Jerry’ Kocherhans, Rapid City; her son, Joseph Kim and his wife Eileen, Kocherhans, San Diego, CA; one granddaughter Sierra Briana (Kocherhans) Diaz and her husband Martin, Long Beach, CA; one sister, Lois W. (Frank) Rezac, Rapid City; several nieces and nephews; three very special friends, Shannon Hamed, Greensboro, NC; Mary Louise Campbell, Mascoutah, IL, (friends for nearly 70 years), and former daughter-in-law Lynne E Shula, Long Beach, CA and a very special cousin Vera R. Drust, Rapid City. She was preceded in death by her parents, four brothers and her son, Steve Allen Kocherhans.