Shirley Dorean Gelin

Shirley Dorean Gelin, 95, of Los Angeles, California, passed away peacefully on September 3, 2026, at Concordia Board and Care in Granada Hills, California.

Shirley was born on November 28, 1930, in Salem, Massachusetts, to Morris and Mamie Aronson. She grew up and attended school in Salem, graduating from Classical and High School in 1948 and Wilfred Academy of Hairdressing and Cosmetology in Boston the following year.

Shirley married her husband, Leonard “Len” Gelin, on April 16, 1950, in Roxbury, Massachusetts. The happy couple moved to Los Angeles, California, in 1955, where Shirley held several positions with General Telephone from 1961 until her retirement in 1991.

Shirley and Len relished traveling and vacationing, particularly taking cruises and overnight drives to Las Vegas for gambling and entertainment. Closer to home, they were known to enjoy golfing with friends at Penmar Golf Course in Venice, California, as well as get-togethers to play poker and other card games. Shirley loved card games, including solitaire, which she could play for hours on end if time allowed. She was also a fan of bingo and would walk to the nearby senior center to play almost every day during her golden years.

Shirley is survived by her son, Stanley Gelin, and his wife, Gail Gelin; her granddaughter, Crystal Gelin; her great-granddaughter, Teagan Brocato; as well as other family and friends. She was preceded in death by her husband of 51 years, Leonard Gelin, and her daughter, Susan Gelin.

A funeral service will be held at Stanetsky-Hymanson Memorial Chapel in Salem, Massachusetts, on Tuesday, September 8, at 11:00 a.m., with burial to follow at Sons of Jacob Cemetery in Danvers, Massachusetts. Family and friends are then invited to gather for refreshments at Su Chang’s in Peabody, Massachusetts.

The family requests that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Alzheimer’s Association at https://www.alz.org/

For more information or to register in the online guestbook, please visit www.stanetskyhymansonsalem.com.