Gail E. Arrant, 85, of Conroe, Texas, passed away on November 25. Born in Schuylkill County, Pa., to Joseph G. and Caroline Kline Blackwell. She was the youngest and last survivor of six siblings: Sheldon Blackwell, Joel Blackwell, Carolyn Stevens, Donald Blackwell and Joan Lenore Schmeltzle.
Falling in love with a sailor on shore leave in Hawaii, Gail married the late Marvin Walter Arrant and moved to Houston. They lived most of their lives in Conroe, where she was a member of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church and the Panorama Country Club. She learned to play golf and became a member of the Panorama Women’s Golf Association, where she was known for her long drives off the tee box and received an award as the Most Improved Player.
Gail graduated from the Allentown Hospital School of Nursing. She worked as a registered nurse in Allentown, San Francisco, Houston and Conroe. Most of her nursing career was spent in the recovery rooms (post anesthesia care units) of the former Montgomery County Hospital on South 1st Street, which later became the Conroe Regional Hospital and HCA Houston/Conroe on I-45.
Survivors include Susan Eckert and her husband, Terrance, of Dallas; and Douglas Arrant and his wife Tana Arrant, of Spring, Tex. Gail leaves grandchildren Megan Arrant and her fiancé Christopher Gross, Morgan Arrant-Russell and her husband Morgan Russell, Allison Arrant and Phillip Eckert as well as her great grandchildren: Harleigh Gross and Ava, Ember, India and the late Ivy Russell and numerous nieces and nephews.
Services will be held at Cashner Funeral Home, 801 Teas Road, Conroe, TX 77303, on Monday, December 6, at 10:30 a.m. with visitation at 10 a.m. Family and friends unable to attend are welcome to participate via Facebook Live. Visit CashnerConroe.com for a link. In lieu of flowers, please consider support for the American Stroke Association or your local PBS station.
