Patricia L. Bedford-Gaines

On the morning of January 14, 2014 Patricia (Pat) L. Bedford- Gaines passed away peacefully of natural causes at her home in Las Vegas, Nevada while being visited and comforted by family members. She had just celebrated her 90th birthday.

She was born December 11, 1923 in Cozad, Nebraska to her parents Walter Leo Hanley of Burwell, Nebraska and Estelle Mae Ganow of Valentine, Nebraska. Pat was the eldest of eight siblings; Walter Leo Jr., Lola Maurine, Carita Mae, Bonita Joyce¸ Terrence Ray, Colin Paul and Joseph James.

For most of her youth she lived in Grand Island, Nebraska where she graduated from Grand Island Senior High. In 1943 she married John Foster and had the first of her five children, Terrence Lee (Terry) Bedford. She helped with the farm, enjoyed raising chickens and turkeys and when WWII started she became a “Rosie the Riveter” at a munitions factory.

In 1949 she moved to Las Vegas, Nevada after she and John divorced and started working at the “Zanza Bar” on North Las Vegas Blvd as a cocktail waitress, met Thomas (Tommy) Blocker who was a musician and band leader. They married in 1950 and had four children together; Tom Bedford, Kathy Bedford, Jane Bedford-Jennings, and Gail Kaster-Inman. Unfortunately, they divorced in 1958.

She married Allen (Al) Bedford in 1959, moved to New Jersey for 6 months and then came back to Las Vegas to live where it was warm. Al died suddenly of a heart-attack at the age of 42. Not wanting to raise five children as a single mom and work the hours of a cocktail waitress, she took a training course to be a “keypunch operator” and landed a job at Southwest Gas where she worked for close to 30 years… eventually, with a lot of hard work, she became “Director of Operations,” a title she was proud of, as she always loved being the boss!

In 1965 she married Delbert Madsen and continued to raise her family and work. As a side business she worked on their rental properties in Henderson. She always found time to attend her children’s school events, provide horses and hay, work the snack-bar at the Henderson Saddle Club during any team-roping or rodeo the kids were involved in. She divorced Del in 1983.

Pat’s job at Southwest Gas offered her a job in Phoenix, Arizona where she lived for a few years, met Donald (Don) F. Gaines and took an early retirement. They married in 1987 then traveled around the country in a motor-home for many years.

Pat and Don packed a lot of living into the last 25 years. They looked for gold in the mountains of Nevada, drove through all but one state in the lower 48 during their travels, continued to be involved in kids, grandkids and great-grandkids lives. She was always there with a helping hand, an open heart and lots of food to keep everyone fed and busy. Pat loved to dance and she enjoyed cooking for the family…us kids just had to make sure we all “knew” the dishwasher was empty and to get the dishes rinsed and in the dishwasher!

In her later years, she loved to read the newspaper, look at ads for upcoming “sales”, talk to her kids by phone, listen to music and watch old “westerns” on TV.

Pat is preceded in death by her parents, all of her younger siblings, a husband (AL) and two of her children (Tom & Kathy).

She is survived by her husband Don Gaines, children Terry Bedford (Las Vegas), Jane Bedford-Jennings (Utah), Gail Kaster-Inman (Las Vegas) and step-children Lisa Hall (Wisconsin) and Larry Gaines (Florida), nine grandkids and twelve great-grandkids.

Special thanks from the family to Mary Quale for her special care in tending to Mom over these last five years. She loved you and your gentle ways.

Visitation will be held on Friday, January 17, 2014 from 3-7pm at Palm Mortuary – Downtown, 1325 N Main Street, Las Vegas, NV 89101

Funeral Service to be held Saturday, January 18, 2014 starting at 9:00am at Palm Mortuary Downtown, followed by a Graveside Burial at Historic Woodlawn Cemetery 1500 Las Vegas Blvd North, Las Vegas, NV 89101.

Family and friends are invited to come and share memories and celebrate her life. In lieu of flowers, donations would be appreciated by the family to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation www.cff.org in honor of Tom and Kathy Bedford. Mom would really love and appreciate your helping them.

Arrangements under the direction of Palm Downtown Mortuary, Las Vegas, NV.