Mary Ann Gilmore

Mary Ann Glimore nee Gafford

Visitation for Mary Ann Gilmore, 96, will be from 10 a.m. until the time of funeral service at 11 a.m. Saturday, October 14, at the First United Methodist Church of Glen Ellyn, 424 Forest Ave., Glen Ellyn. Interment will be in Wheaton Cemetery, Wheaton.

Born Sept. 28, 1921 in her grandparents’ home in Oklahoma City, OK, she passed away on Friday, October 6, 2017 at Beacon Hill in Lombard.

She was raised in Lawton, OK, where she attended Cameron College, majoring in French, and where she met her loving husband of 66 ½ years, Loren D. Gilmore (1919-2009), who was stationed at Fort Sill. After WWII ended, the couple moved to Peewaukee, WI with their first child. 7 years later, they moved to Glen Ellyn, where they resided from 1952, raising 4 children until they moved to Beacon Hill in 2006.

A woman of great faith, for 65 years she was a member of Glen Ellyn’s First United Methodist Church, where she taught Sunday school and participated in the Ladies’ Circle.

She was a source of light and love to anyone she met, and made her home a place of welcoming acceptance. She adored children and for many years was known as “the candy lady” for the treats she always had on offer. A pianist, she loved music and encouraged young people to follow their talent. She also loved literature, and never having lost her passion for her native southwestern Oklahoma, at the age of 90 she began writing her memories in the form of short stories.

She was a selfless and devoted daughter, sister, wife, niece, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother.

Survivors include her beloved sister Betty (Harry) Gilbert of Oklahoma City, John (Nina) of Ft. Bragg, CA, Laurie (William) Perkins of Elk Grove Village, Donald (Henrietta) of Milford, NJ, and Scott (partner Kris Jarantoski) of Chicago; grandchildren David (Jennifer) Carson, Holly (Joseph) De Falco, Loren, Matthew (Ingrid), Emily and Sarah Gilmore, and great-grandchildren Daniel and Nora Carson, Ella and Luca De Falco, and many nieces and nephews.

Funeral plans were entrusted to Leonard Memorial Funeral Home of Glen Ellyn (630-469-0032) 

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