Gladys Harden

Gladys Harden was born in Lincolnton, Georgia on January 3, 1940 to the late LB and Amelia Moss. She was the 4th of 8 children; six brothers and one sister. As a young adult, she had an opportunity to leave the south and relocate to NYC, where she met and married LeRoy Harden Jr. From this union, Vincent, Gladys’ only child was born.

Sometime after the union between Gladys and LeRoy had ended, Gladys met Richard (Buddy) Mills who help to raise Vincent until age 14.

Gladys eventually went on to have a career with the United States Postal Service until taking an early retirement package many years later. During her retirement, she informally adopted two grandchildren, Melissa and Michelle Mack who referred to Gladys as ‘Nana’.

After a few years of retirement, Gladys went back to work for the City of New York Police Department as a Police Administrative Aide in lower Manhattan at One Police Plaza for about 8 years. She actually witnessed, went through and continued to work after 9-11. About a year later she retired once more.

Gladys was a regular churchgoer, visiting many Baptist and Protestant churches and read her bible nightly before going to bed.

Gladys loved to travel. She went on many cruises and trips to the Caribbean with family and friends and she even made it to Hawaii. Gladys loved to have nice things. She loved to shop, whether it was clothing, jewelry or furniture. Gladys had very good taste. Ask anyone who knew her.

When her son, Vincent, met Lisa, who would later become his wife, Lisa was raising two small children, Britney and Brandon. Gladys loved them as her own grandchildren. Eventually, Vincent and Lisa had two more children Taylor (whom Gladys referred to by her middle name Monet) and Bria. Gladys was now blessed with 6 grandchildren and stayed busy with family and friends until being diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s and dementia in 2014.

Gladys eventually moved into the Atria Assisted Living facility in Riverdale NY. She was well liked and taken care of by the staff and was often visited by family and friends.

In 2017, as her condition worsened, Gladys was moved to the Huntington Hills Nursing Home in Melville NY. Although her memory was somewhat deteriorated, she was very nice to everyone who came in contact with her. She may not have remembered your name, but she had a joke and a wisecrack waiting for you. The staff enjoyed her company as well. When she spoke on the phone whether she realized who she was speaking to or not, she would always ask, “So when are you coming to see me?” Gladys was very happy.

She was called home to be with The Lord on April 15, 2020.

Gladys is survived by her son, Vincent, daughter in-law Lisa, grandchildren Britney, Brandon, Taylor (Monet), Bria, Melissa and Michele, great granddaughters Lyla and Ava, two brothers Jesse and Rem and a sister Lucille. Gladys is also survived by a multitude of nieces, nephews, cousins and other beloved family and friends.

A special thanks to: The Mack Family - Jimmy, Margaret, Melissa and Michele; Ms. Arlene; Cousin Sandee Harris; The Huntington Hills Nursing Home Staff of Ward 1D, Melville, New York; The Atria Assisted Living Memory Care Ward Staff, Riverdale, New York and Gladys’ CNA companions, Charmaine (The Bronx) and Helen (Melville).