Obituary: GLENN, GWENDOLYN

Gwendolyn Wahlen Glenn1926 ~ 2012Gwendolyn Wahlen Glenn, loving wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and friend, passed away peacefully, surrounded by her family, on July 24, 2012, after a long and valiant struggle with Parkinson's disease.Gwen was born January 22, 1926, in San Bernardino, California, to Julius Oliver and Lucy Leona Crowther Wahlen. She grew up in San Bernardino and was very close to her brother, Don, and sister, Lois. She had many friends, excelled scholastically, and developed a love for music and literature. Gwen attended Brigham Young University, where she met her eternal companion, John James Glenn, whom she married November 20, 1950, in the Logan Utah Temple. Gwen was a wonderful mother, and she devoted her life to creating a loving home for Jim and their five children. Her favorite scripture was "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth." (3 John 1:4) Gwen also found great joy in being a grandmother and was very proud of the talents and accomplishments of her grandchildren.Friends and family were always welcome in the Glenn home, whether gathering on a Sunday evening, staying a few days, or moving in for a time. There was always fun and good food, for Gwen was an excellent cook. She was best known for her Christmas cinnamon roll wreaths, homemade bread on Monday afternoons, and her famous taco dinners. Gwen loved to sew, and family and friends benefitted from her exceptional talent.Gwen sacrificed by working part time in an orthodontist office to help support her children when it came time for college and missions. Her cheerful and personable nature endeared her to co-workers and to patients and their families. She served faithfully in many church callings and especially enjoyed her service with the young women. Gwen and Jim had a wonderful experience serving for two years together as Church Education missionaries in Ireland. They were much beloved by those they served, and Gwen maintained friendships with many in Ireland throughout the years.Gwen always had a positive attitude, a witty sense of humor, and never complained characteristics that continued even throughout her illness. She had a song for every word and a poem for every occasion. The comic poems she loved and shared kept her spirits high and brought much joy to others during the last year of her life.Gwen is survived by her five children: Bonnie (Clyde) Gowers, Jamie Glenn, Julie (Dan) Gibbons, Don (Rachelle) Glenn, and Tracy (John) Gygi; twenty-three grandchildren; and nineteen great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, parents, brother, sister, and daughter-in-law, Jolene Glenn.The family wishes to thank the wonderful and capable staff at Alta Ridge in Holladay for their love and tender care of our Mom over the past 16 months. Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, August 7, 2012, at 12:00 noon at the Cottonwood Third Ward Chapel, 6301 South 2300 East, Holladay, Utah. Friends may call Monday, August 6, from 6:00-8:00 p.m. at Wasatch Lawn Memorial Park and Mortuary, 3401 South Highland Drive, Salt Lake City, Utah and Tuesday, August 7, at the church from 10:30-11:30 a.m. Interment, Wasatch Lawn Memorial Park.