Gail Ann Butler Plummer

Gail Butler and I, Mike Plummer, first met at our friend Monica’s house. It was a party for our hosts’ upcoming nuptials. First impressions are important and I was able to dazzle Gail with my Budweiser charm, stylishly loud print shirt, dashing good looks and suave banter. And to seal the deal, her shiny new BMW sparkled when parked next to my beat up VW Rabbit with duck taped visqueen rear window. I was way out my league, but that night started a 24-year relationship that I wouldn’t change for the world.

Gail Ann Butler Plummer died April 3, 2017 at Big Bend Hospice after a short but ferocious battle with cancer. She had beaten big C’s ass twice before, but this time the evil bastard sent in a stronger, angrier team. She faced it with courage, sweetness and grace that is rare in today’s world.

Gail was born in Kennett, Missouri and spent periods of her life in Texas and California before finally settling in Tallahassee, Florida. Gail rarely spoke of her own accomplishments, but as a competitive skeet shooter, she won the 1989 World Skeet Championship in San Antonio, Texas in both the Ladies Doubles and Ladies .410 categories. Gail was the 1989 California State Ladies Skeet Champion and she was on the NSSA Ladies All American Second Team in 1990 and the NSSA Ladies All American Honorable Mention Team in 1991, as well as making Zone 7 All-Star teams for both years. The NSSA is the National Skeet Shooting Association and Zone 7 covers the 13 westernmost states in the U.S. I don’t know what it takes to be called an expert, but over the Florida years when we met and shot skeet together, her misses were fewer than the toes on my feet. She would joke that all a target had to do to make her miss was sit still.

Gail was also a St. Louis Cardinals fan. She loved her Cardinals. She was crazy about her Cardinals, and although she would talk Cardinal baseball to just about anyone, she especially liked to talk to Cubs fans about the Cardinals. Feel free to confirm that with any Cubs fans that knew her.

Gail loved dogs and they loved her, for good reason. If you were Gail’s pooch, you would have the best food, plenty of treats, a lot of attention and the best canine healthcare available. Fortunately, I also have an affinity for dogs, because if I hadn’t, Gail would have ditched me early on.

Gail graduated from the University of Missouri, was a member of Chi Omega sorority, and a Golden Girl with the Mizzou Marching Band. Gail loved to travel, especially with friends, find new recipes, and play the occasional one-armed bandit or Blackjack hand.

Gail was employed by Syn-Tech Systems. She also had previous employment stints at Aderant, Solution 6 North America, PC Docs, and Benedict Engineering while living in Tallahassee.

Gail was preceded in death by her mother Ruth Crain. She is survived by her husband Mike Plummer; her father Reynold Crain, sisters Kay Anderson (Jim) and Beth Willis, 5 nieces, 3 nephews, and 1 pet Yorkshire terrier, named Truman, after the Mizzou Tiger Mascot. We will all miss her dearly. A memorial service will take place at 11 am on Saturday, April 15th, at Culley’s MeadowWood Funeral Home, 700 Timberlane Road in Tallahassee. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Gail’s honor to Big Bend Hospice at 1723 Mahan Center Blvd, Tallahassee, FL 32308. Online at: www.bigbendhospice.org .