Gloria Ann (Morton) Elm

PUEBLO WEST - Gloria Ann (Morton) Elm, wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and friend was surrounded by family as she passed away on Aug. 13, 2023, at her home in Pueblo West. Gloria was born Dec.18, 1930, in Lexington, Neb. She attended Kearney (Nebraska) High School where she was involved, among many activities, in student government. Gloria served as student body secretary, while her future husband, Dick Elm, served as president. In high school, she was selected to National Honor Society, was a cheerleader, May Queen and excelled in design and art. By virtue of her recognized artistic talents, she was tapped by a local clothing store in Kearney to design their window displays while still in high school. Although she was offered a college scholarship in design after high school, she chose the path of wife and mother, and married her high school sweetheart, Dick Elm on Nov. 11, 1949. Their legendary lifelong romance was celebrated in the fall of 2019 on their 70th wedding anniversary. They began their family in Nebraska, where their first of six children was born in 1950 and their last in Pueblo in 1958 - five daughters and a son. Dick and Gloria moved to Pueblo in 1953 where Dick would become a longtime, and fondly remembered, educator. Gloria managed a large and lively household and prided herself in wrangling six very active children. Ever the seamstress, she made most of the clothes for the five girls - and even their doll’s outfits. Given the dearth of fashionable maternity clothing at the time, Gloria combined her fashion sense and sewing skills to sell one of a kind custom clothing for expecting mothers. This provided additional income while still managing a busy home. She was well remembered for her excellent culinary skills - from feeding a family of eight on a single chicken to single-handedly hosting holiday dinners of over 50. With an ever-expanding family of 18 grandchildren and so far 29 great grandchildren, they recall fondly how ‘Grandma Great’ would always have something delicious to eat whenever they came over. Grandma’s home in Pueblo West was the warm and welcoming gathering place for all major holidays, and Gloria’s feasts were always the highlight. After 15 years as a ‘domestic engineer’ and as the last of the kids had entered school, Gloria embarked on her second career. She entered college at the then University of

Southern Colorado (now CSU-Pueblo) to become a teacher for 23 years. As an elementary teacher at Bradford, Morton and then Sunset Park, she fueled her passion for education by making sure each student was recognized for their individual learning needs. She was recognized for her unique level of commitment towards teaching ‘the whole child’ with the Colorado Reading Teacher of the Year Award in 1976. Her principal at Sunset Park, who nominated her, noted Gloria’s “expertise in diagnosing and implementing techniques with emphasis on individual instruction. Mrs. Elm displays great empathy and sensitivity in the classroom where instruction is based on the dignity and worth of every child in that room.” Many students would fondly reminisce with Gloria when they would see her, even after decades of leaving her schools. A true educator never forgets a student and a student never forgets someone who inspired them. And given that ethos, Gloria and Dick instilled a legacy of educators within their own family with 13 children and grandchildren going on to careers in public education. Gloria acquired an appreciation of art at an early age from her mother, which she nurtured throughout her life. She would often be found outdoors drawing or painting watercolor Colorado landscapes close to her home in Pueblo West or on nearby Pueblo Reservoir. She sketched and painted on the numerous wilderness backpacking adventures throughout the West, which she enjoyed with family, friends and dogs. Skilled at fishing, she could also convert her catch into gourmet skillet dinners while on the trail. Gloria’s father was an avid gambler and spent many hours playing cards with her and Dick. The couple carried on this tradition as they both loved to go to Las Vegas and Cripple Creek. Gloria would often get on a winning machine and hand it off to one of her kids - who would invariably lose it all in short order. Both she and Dick were physically active throughout their lives and in their later years enjoyed the health and friendship rewards they found in water aerobics in Pueblo West. Above all, Gloria shared her love, without reservation and equally, with everyone in her expansive and blended family - including the canine members. The loss of her boundless love leaves a big hole in all our hearts. Preceded in death, Gloria lost the love of her life, Dick, after 70 years of marriage in 2020; and daughter, Sue in 2022. Gloria and Dick’s love story produced five surviving children: Cindy (Greg) Elm-Sinn of Rye, Colo., Sally Guasta of Pueblo West, Sandy Sazama of Olathe, Colo., Mike (Debbie) Elm of Montrose, Colo., and Shelly (Greg) Brunjak of Leadville, Colo. Donations may be made in Gloria’s name to National Jewish Health Respiratory Institute/Denver; Sangre de Cristo Hospice/Pueblo and PAWS for Life/Pueblo. Gloria would want us all to remember this quote from another legendary teacher, Dr. Seuss: “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”