Gloria, or “Bamba,” as her grandkids endearingly (and subsequently, others) called her lived for and loved her family above all else. Seattle Seahawks football was a close second. She attended every game faithfully for 25 years as a season ticket holder, making the 6-hour round-trip from Portland with her beloved son, Mike. Gloria was a great cook, (skills undoubtedly passed down from her mother Linnie, who was a restaurant owner and cook). Gloria had quite the green thumb with beautiful gardens every year to show for it. She also enjoyed traveling, taking her grandkids on trips when they graduated high school and then again, college. Always up for adventure, she even attended a Seahawks Super Bowl in her seventies.
She was raised “up Lincoln Crick, (Creek), in rural Grays Harbor County, graduated from Montesano High School and spent almost all of her life in the Pacific Northwest.
Gloria is survived by brother Ron (Debbie) Loomis, daughter-in-law Kim (Gary) Chambers, granddaughter Lindsay Kirkham, grandson James Kirkham, great-grandchildren Wren Kirkham, Ra’Cha Kirkham, Baby Rae Kirkham and her namesake, Glorious Kirkham along with many nieces and nephews with whom she was very close; notably Pam Trautman who was instrumental in her end-of-life-care.
Gloria is proceeded in death by her husband Gordon Leigh Kirkham, son Gordon Michael, “Mike” Kirkham, mother Linnie Olsen, step-father Ralph Loomis, brothers Wesley, “Sunny” Childers, Stanley Childers and sister Wilma Trautman along with lifelong friends Ernestine Durham and Donna Daly.
Gloria will be remembered for her selfless dedication to her family and the pure joy motherhood and grandmother-hood brought her, along with her bravery and self-reliance as a young mother widowed as a teenager who worked tirelessly and continuously, most notably as a skilled office manager and bookkeeper, living independently into her latter years.
She is no longer here physically, but undoubtedly reunited with her Mikey and Gordy. Her name and cherished memory will live on fondly.
Funeral and burial services will be held at Skyline Memorial Gardens where she will be laid to rest next to Mike on Tuesday, March 31 in Portland, Oregon. Funeral is at 2pm, followed by burial at 3pm.
