Honoring Velma Frances Gleason

Velma Frances Gleason, née Davies, was born at home in Wigan, Lancashire, England, on March 16, 1936. The only child of Fred and Ada Davies, Velma was never lacking in company. Her first home, a brick duplex in the old mining town of Wigan, was located directly next door to her maternal grandparents, and so began her life surrounded by family, friends, and fellow members of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which her father had dedicated his life to as a Minister.

No matter the address (Fred’s ministry took the family from Wigan to Manchester to Birmingham), the Davies’s homes were a safe haven, especially during the Second World War, which Velma endured with her Mickey Mouse gas mask and the bounty her grandfather, John Taylor, grew in vegetable gardens that supplemented meager wartime rations. 

It was then off to Independence, Missouri, headquarters and centerplace for the RLDS church, in 1947 at the age of 11. Velma journeyed to the U.S. via the SS Queen Elizabeth, which wouldn’t be her first time aboard the vessel. In her first years in Independence, Velma found a life-long friend in her neighbor, Fay Kohlman, and after teaching herself piano, an enduring happiness in music. Velma’s musical talents led her to star in Middle School musicals, and later, she’d play the pipe organ for her congregation, serve as the dutiful piano teacher to her children and many grandchildren, and sing soprano in the Houston Masterworks Chorus.  

After High School, Velma devoted her life to nursing, matriculating through the Independence Sanitarium and Hospital, which required years of grueling work in pediatrics, surgery, orthopedics, and psychiatry, among others. Throughout this time, Velma exhibited adroit leadership skills (which resulted in her role as Student Body President) and a sly sense of humor. Graduating in 1957, she and her classmates topped crisp white nursing uniforms with blue wool capes embroidered with “ISH” on the collar. Though the initials represented Independence Sanitarium & Hospital, Velma joked to her classmates it meant “I Survived Hell.” 

While in school in November of 1955, a group of young men who were enrolled in the University of Missouri visited Velma and her fellow nurses at the hospital and nursing dormitories. A couple of weeks after Velma had given them a tour of the facilities and spent an evening in the dorm’s lounge watching a little TV, Velma received a letter from one of the men—a young Canadian named Ronald Gleason who was getting his graduate’s degree in Accounting. The two wed just over two years later on May 12, 1957, at Liberty Street RLD Church in Independence, Missouri. Ada handmade the periwinkle blue bridesmaid dresses, Fay was the maid of Honor, and the two honeymooned at The Lake of the Ozarks. Velma and Ronald enjoyed an ever-lasting love and 58 years of marriage. 

Ronald and Velma led a devout life and were as wholly dedicated to each other as they were to their community. At the IHS hospital where she worked, Velma welcomed her three children, Brian, Kerri, and Kendra, to the world. Motherhood was a juggle; she recalls working the Saturday night shift at the hospital, heading home to ready her children for church to then play the organ at the Sunday service. Velma possessed an extreme knack for organization, an eye for detail, and a memory like an elephant that brilliantly positioned her as the matriarch of her growing family. It would also come in handy when, in 2013, she endeavored to write her memoirs which she did with astonishing detail—from the lyrics of a song heard in her youth in England to the name of the gentleman who served meals on the SS Queen Mary to vivid descriptions of the most every hotel she stayed at on her travels throughout the world and whether or not there were enough washcloths on hand. 

Velma and Ronald continued to raise their three children in Lamoni, Iowa, across the street from Graceland College, before embarking on yet another move to Houston, Texas. Velma understood that home was where the heart was, and the family was open to relocations, downsizing, and upsizing if it was best for the family. She’d say she loved coming home to find the house filled with happy people, and her family and friends obliged with frequent visits.

Velma’s career continued in Houston, and she gracefully balanced her roles as nursing administrator, wife, mother, grandmother, and eventually great-grandmother—no swim meet, birthday, or dance recital went unattended. Once retired, Velma didn’t idle away the hours but continued in her pursuit of togetherness. Velma would not only coordinate multiple family reunions (in Ontario, in Asheville) for various branches of the family, but she also took it upon herself to organize several reunions for her nursing class. For the 50th anniversary, she tasked herself with assembling personalized books for each of her remaining 30 IHS classmates, filled with school-time memories and accounts of their lives after graduation. Velma would say she grew up without siblings, but, in these women, she had a sisterhood of 30-plus.

Velma was the beating heart of many gatherings, groups, and organizations. Those who were lucky enough to be in her life will find that many of their most cherished memories were crafted by Velma. She never missed a moment to celebrate and connect with her loved ones, whether it was the never-late Valentine’s Day cards she would mail to her grandchildren, the melodic Happy Birthday she’d ring her children to sing each year, or the amusing email thread she’d forward to you for a laugh. She leaves behind a legacy of a life lived with care, compassion, and grace and her family hopes to honor her memory by doing the same. She will be profoundly missed. 

She leaves behind a loving family: her three children Brian Gleason, Kerri Brodmann, Kendra Gleason; eight grandchildren Aydah Rao, the late Khalid Albaba, Lilah Ramzi, Teagan Gleason, Brenna Gleason, Kelsey Gleason, MacKenzie Gleason-Manning, and Kenley Gleason-Manning; and one great grandchild, Khalin Rao.