The Gladys We Knew

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Gelene Simpson is a Daily Sun columnist.

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February 6, 2012

By Gelene Simpson Corsicana Daily Sun The Corsicana Daily Sun Mon Feb 06, 2012, 08:36 PM CST

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If I had to choose someone to describe as a beautiful Christian lady, it would have been Gladys E. (Stratton) Dietel of Dawson who left this world at age 97 on Jan. 28. She had been a member of the Fellowship Sunday School Class at First United Methodist Church of Dawson, and as the teacher of that class, I learned to expect Gladys to put her whole heart into anything she undertook to do. She was the faithful type, the type who always wanted things to be just right or at least as close as was humanly possible.

She was a natural to be named the Communion Steward for the church. Every detail was carefully seen to by this devoted lady. The linens for the Communion Table were ordered by her and kept immaculate. The ceremony was never delayed nor anything but perfectly in order with Gladys in charge of the particulars.

She also had a hand in the decoration and furnishing of the parsonage when it was new. Her home was a regular storybook scene. As a member of the Dawson Study Club, she served as hostess there from time to time. It was always a treat to see her hold an event because in that day, the Dawson Study Club members were striving to keep up the traditions their mothers had set; and, believe me, everything was always letter perfect. It was really amazing to me how one person could arrange and plan one of these events, let alone, bring it off with such flair. But this was the beauty of the challenge. And Gladys was one of the best at getting it done.

I did not know her son and daughter-in-law Edwin and Betty Dietel of Bethesda, Md., but her daughter and son-in-law, Margaret and Leon McLain lived not too far from me over in the Union High area south of Dawson. In fact Leon was our best supplier of hay to feed our cattle when we first tried to raise animals. And her grandson John McLain would often be the hay delivery boy when he was young. I think everyone around Dawson thought he was very special. He could do a great job at anything that was needed even at a very young age and time only made him better. Needless to say, his grandmother thought he hung the moon. We all agreed. He is truly a remarkable person who has come through an unbelievable mishap. He made his grandmother proud.

Now, I need to say a little something about the impression that Gladys’ appearance made on me personally. But I’m sure I am not the only one who felt this way. She was a very striking lady. We used to say she dressed “to the nines,” which meant she had great taste in clothes. Everything about her was just as it should be. When I saw her picture in the newspaper, I had to say, “Yes, that’s Gladys, for sure.” Her hair was just right. She had a big smile on her face. She had the best taste in dresses and shoes that I had ever seen. It was uplifting to me just to see her come in to Sunday School Class on Sunday.

And I liked her voice. It was kind of husky. She didn’t waste time on small talk very much. If she said something, she meant it, and you could count on that.

When I saw her at the nursing home just before Christmas, she didn’t say anything, but she was awake, and I told her all this stuff I have told you. She was an inspiration to me. I loved her and still do.

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Genele Simpson is a Daily Sun columnist. Her column appears on Tuesdays. Want to “Soundoff” on this column? Email: soundoff@corsicanadailysun.com

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