Derek Riner was raised in Protection, Kansas. He received his bachelors degree in Health & Human Performance at Fort Hays State University in 1995. Derek graduated from Kansas City Kansas Community College in 1997 with a degree in Mortuary Science. After graduation, Derek worked in Wellington, Kansas for a year before moving to Oberlin, Kansas, where he worked for a family owned funeral home for fifteen years. While working in Oberlin, Derek met his wife Angela. Together they have three daughters. Derek maintains Funeral Director and/or Embalmer licenses in Kansas and Nebraska and is a Certified Mortuary Science Practitioner (CMSP) in Colorado.

Angela Riner grew up in Oberlin, Kansas. She attended Kansas University and Colby Community College. She received her degree in Dental Hygiene in 2006. Angela had worked in private practice in St. Francis, Oakley, and Norton, Kansas until their family moved to Lamar in March 2012. Angela is a busy mother of three daughters. She now works full-time at the funeral home with her husband. Angela is a licensed Insurance Agent in Colorado. Derek and his wife, Angela own and operate Valley Funeral & Cremation in Holly, Lamar and Las Animas.