Gloria Theresa Pickle

Gloria was born 96 years ago, cherished daughter of Kathleen and Charles McKinney. She was born at home on Chokoloskee Island, in the front room on the right. She was a sister to Dorothy (Thompson), Mildred (Rewis), Donald, Hazel (Davis), Leola (Parker), and Wayne.

Gloria married Herbert Pickle in 1948 and remained by his side until his passing in 2017. Gloria was a loving mother to her children Kenneth (Sharon), Keith (Janet), and Kathleen (Justin Eller). Each child in turn was a tender new joy for her. She continued to reassure each of us of her love over the years since childhood. We never had any reason to doubt her love.

When grandchildren came into her life each of them was regarded as a special gift, always worthy of her loving attention. Jeremy (Kathleen), Jordan (Rachael), Rachel (Jake), Amy, Adam (Stephanie), Erica (Loren), Austin (Melissa), Erin (Chris), Emily (Alex) and Kenny would all testify to feeling the love and respect for their persons that Gloria bestowed. She lived to welcome 13 great-grandchildren.

Gloria’s married life included moving over a dozen times. She lived in Florida, South Carolina, Ohio, and then in Florida again. It was in finally moving to Hollywood, Florida that Gloria was able to establish a “home” for her family of five. Gloria belonged to the Rotary Anns at the Hollywood Rotary Club and had a group of good friends who met regularly as a sewing circle. It has never been clear how much sewing was accomplished in these meetings of friends; it may be that Gloria felt that their more important purpose was the nurture and maintenance of friendships. People who got to know Gloria seemed to recognize her as a special person, able to receive and give friendship.

Gloria’s childhood on Chokoloskee Island gave her a lifelong love of the water. She took her children into the ocean off Hollywood Beach regularly. Later in life, she particularly enjoyed the views from her ocean-front condo on Hollywood Beach, as well as the ever-changing vistas of the Caloosahatchee River from her “River House” in Alva.

As a child, Gloria played the ukulele and banjo and loved music for the rest of her life. She particularly liked music from her years as a young adult woman, the years around World War II. In her thirties, Gloria took up painting and developed a level of skill that satisfied her creative spirit. We children treasure her paintings as reminders of our mother.

In her last months, Gloria was blessed to be in the day-to-day care of a group of extraordinarily loving caregivers. We children are grateful to Marianne and Dennis Frautten, Irene Gambino, Venessa Marton, Anzhelika Youngblood, Michele Godwin, Lucy Oleynikova, and the home-based staff of Hope Hospice.

A visitation for Gloria will be held Monday, March 21, 2022 from 10:30 AM to 11:00 AM at Hodges Funeral Home at Lee Memorial Park, 12777 State Road 82, Fort Myers, FL 33913 followed by the funeral service at 11:00 am. A reception will be held at Hodges Funeral Home immediately following the service.

The family will be grateful for either floral donations or a donation to Hope Hospice in Gloria's memory.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.leememorialparkfuneralhome.com for the Pickle family.