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Gloria Morse

December 17, 1939 - January 1, 2017
Lawton, MI

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Visitation

Friday, January 6, 2017
11:00 AM to 1:00 PM EST
Betzler Life Story Funeral Homes
Paw Paw Location
60900 Michigan 40
Paw Paw, MI 49079
(269) 657-3870
Driving Directions

Service

Friday, January 6, 2017
1:00 PM EST
Betzler Life Story Funeral Homes
Paw Paw Location
60900 Michigan 40
Paw Paw, MI 49079
(269) 657-3870
Driving Directions

Contributions


At the family's request memorial contributions are to be made to those listed below. Please forward payment directly to the memorial of your choice.

Ted Morse Family
C/O 60900 M-40 Highway
Paw Paw, MI 49079
(269) 657-3870

Flowers


Below is the contact information for a florist recommended by the funeral home.

Taylor's Florist and Gifts
215 E. Michigan Ave.
Paw Paw, MI 49079
(269) 657-6256
Driving Directions
Web Site

Ambati
1830 S. Westnedge
Kalamazoo, MI 49008
(269) 349-4961
Driving Directions
Web Site

Life Story / Obituary


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Print

Charismatic, vibrant, and passionate about the people and things she loved, Gloria Morse was the heartbeat of wherever she went. She lived life to the fullest each day, and although she experienced so many amazing things, what made these things so extraordinary was sharing them with her family and friends. Gloria was blessed to share the best years of her life with her true love, and together they loved spending time in the great outdoors. She treasured her role as a mother, but she just might have argued that becoming a grandmother and great-grandmother was her richest reward. Life will never be the same without Gloria here, but the hearts of so many will be forever changed because of her love.

Life was anything but easy during the 1930s as the entire decade was cloaked in the hardship of the Great Depression. Jobs were hard to come by and things only went from bad to worse when a drought covered our nation’s heartland for nearly two years during this same time. Although things were looking up by the dawn of 1939, there were still several obstacles to overcome. Despite the trials around them, Harold and Claudine (Waters) Woodard were able to focus on a time of great joy in their lives as they announced the birth of the baby girl they named Gloria Kaye on December 17, 1939. Born in a small bungalow in town that they called home near Lawton, Michigan, she was the apple of her parents’ eye. She was their only child, and they later moved out to the farm in Lawton. Gloria’s father could fix anything and worked as a trade welder at Eaton’s in Lawton. In fact, Gloria’s father was even a welder on the St. Louis Arch! Her mother was a head supervisor at BE-MO Potato Chips.

In many ways Gloria was a young girl of her generation. While growing up she uncovered several talents as she could play the piano and was a gifted singer who sang in the church choir. Gloria was also an artist and painter. She attended local schools where she excelled in her studies. Gloria was named Miss Lawton and was very involved in the community for several years. Her high school years found her at Lawton High School where she played both the flute and piccolo in the band.

Life was forever changed for Gloria when she became a mother with the birth of her daughter, Kimberly, in 1960. She focused her time and attention on raising her daughter and was a very active part of her life. Gloria was there for all of her various activities, and she even played for her recital in addition to playing for church. She had fantastic skills in the kitchen and loved making big holiday spreads for the holidays. Gloria was also an amazing baker, especially when it came to her pies. She did work outside of the home some as well. She worked for Van Buren County in Lawton as a deputy clerk until retiring. Gloria also did some secretarial work for various doctors offices over the years as well.

New and exciting changes were in store for Gloria when she met her true love. His name was Ted Morse, and they met while on a hayride in 1975. A bit bold, Ted noticed that Gloria was dressed warm in her snowmobile suit and said to her, “You wouldn’t mind sharing that,” as he wasn’t exactly dressed well for the occasion. They hit it off, and they soon found themselves deeply in love. With a desire to share the rest of their lives together, Gloria and Ted were married on July 17, 1976, at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Lawton. The newlyweds went to the Wisconsin Dells for their honeymoon. Ted grew up on Huzzy Lake, which is where they lived together for several years. During their later years they were only there on the weekends and called her family cottage on Cedar Lake home. It had been in the family since the 1960s. They were both outdoor lovers who loved getting in the woods. They did a lot of camping, starting off in tents and later having three trailers over the years. Gloria was really into mushroom hunting and tried not to miss it every year. She enjoyed water skiing on Cedar Lake as well as fishing. Together she and Ted cooked their bluegills. When enjoying some more relaxed time together the two enjoyed working on Thomas Kinkade jigsaw puzzles together.

During their retirement years, Gloria and Ted continued living life to the fullest. When they were retired, they traveled to Florida and also to the Southwest. Gloria’s favorite place was South Padre Island as she loved shopping in all the stores there as well as laying in the sun. She was always very creatively gifted and took to making pine cone wreaths. Gloria even made a few extra dollars selling them. During her younger years she enjoyed going to the Civic Theater, and she was a music fan, especially of country western music. Gloria just loved Elvis, and she cried and cried when he died. She liked playing the slots both in Las Vegas and the Hartford Casinos, and when watching television she loved both Dr. Phil and Dance Moms. Gloria was an animal lover who loved being walked to and from school by her dog, Vickie, while she was growing up. As an adult Gloria raised rat terriers for a few years.

Described as strong, loving, and passionate, no one met Gloria Morse and left unchanged. She was gracious and genuine with a heart that beat to love those around her. A wonderful wife, mother, and grandmother, Gloria leaves behind a timeless legacy that her loved ones will proudly carry on in her footsteps.

Gloria Kaye Morse, of Lawton, died January 1, 2017, at her home. Members of her family include her husband, Ted Morse; special cousin, Geraldine Greve; daughter, Kimberly (Kevin) Henderson; 3 step-children: Jodie (Tom) Cousins, Brian (Kelly) Morse and Thomas Morse; grandchildren: Ashley Henderson-Strong, Whitney (Ethan) Bennett, Blake Henderson, Ross (Katie) Cousins, Hayley (Kenneth) Basham, Chase Morse, Parker Morse, Devin Morse and Arielle Morse; and great-grandchildren: Keith, Gunnar, Griffon and Gilmour. Visit with family and friends on Friday from 11am until service time at 1pm at Betzler & Thompson Life Story Funeral Home, 60900 M-40, Paw Paw (269) 657-3870. Burial will take place at Oak Grove Cemetery, Lawton. Please visit Gloria’s personal web page at www.BetzlerFuneralHome.com, where you can archive a favorite memory or photo and sign her online guestbook before coming to the funeral home. Memorial contributions may be directed to the family.

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