San Bernardino County Obituaries

Gladys Harriet Gilbertson Crowley

Submitted by Peggy Hooper 12 Apr 2008

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Redlands Daily Facts; 04/05/2008

Gladys Harriet Gilbertson Crowley, a former resident of Redlands, died March 23 in Medford, 
Ore., following a stroke. She was 98. 

She was born Oct. 25, 1909, in Benson, Minn., and was one of 12 children. 

She attended St. Cloud State College to train as a teacher and taught grade school in Tracy, 
Minn., where she met John Crowley, also a teacher. They were married in 1936 and moved to 
Riverside, where her husband taught in high school until the United States entered World War II. 

Her husband served in the U.S. Navy during the war, then left teaching to work in government 
and private industry. 

They lived in Colorado, northern Virginia and Southern California, including in Redlands from 1959 
to 1964. When her husband retired, they settled in Medford, Ore., to be near her brother Roy 
Gilbertson and her nephew Dave Engleson. 

Her husband died in 1984, and she remained in their home until her own death. 

She was active in each of the communities she lived in, involved with Sunday School and PTA 
while her children were young, tutoring children in language arts and volunteering in a number 
of other ways after they left home. 

Her daughter Ruth said she made and kept close friends wherever she lived and that she was 
a passionate and expert bridge player, crossworder and gardener. 

Most of all, her daughter said, she was a lifelong advocate of education and instilled a love of 
learning in her children, her grandchildren and everyone close to her. 

Her daughter said the family is proud of her initiative in establishing the Crowley Family 
Scholarship Fund, which gives grants to young women from the Medford area who are planning 
to teach. 

She said her mother's long life was a blessing for those who were close to her and said she 
"cultivated her relationships with the skill of a master gardener, and the hearts that were in 
her care thrived." 

Survivors include her daughter Ruth Crowley and husband Roy Powell of Folsom; her son John 
Crowley and wife Cay Abram Crowley of Seattle; and three grandchildren, Lauren Crowley, 
Patrick Crowley and Jonathan Thompson. 

She did not want a funeral service. The family will hold a private memorial service at her home. 

Memorial contributions may be made to the Crowley Family Scholarship Fund, c/o the Oregon 
Community Foundation, 1221 SW Yamhill #100, Portland, OR 97205.