This details of this life story were collected and written here by Danielle Kearns - thank you baby.
Gladys Virginia Seymour was born on February 9, 1943 in Alexandria Hospital. She was the oldest of four children born to Bill and Ruby Seymour. Growing up, her favorite toy was a baby doll that she covered up in a blanket and pretended to feed milk to. She also took an interest in the games called Mother May I?, Hopscotch, and Run Around the Roses. Gladys also learned how to crochet and make Christmas wreaths from her grandmother, Daisy Washington Taylor. She also enjoyed playing in her playhouse in the spring and making mud pies alongside her siblings. She would look forward to Easter, where she would receive a basket and a new outfit. Her favorite pet was a dog named Tippy. Gladys attended Franconia Elementary School, Mt. Vernon High School, and Lee High School where she graduated. She loved to make biscuits in the kitchen alongside her mother, when she had finished her chores, which included washing the dishes, sweeping, and making her bed. The subject that she favored above all others in school was typing. Gladys graduated in 1961in a class of approximately 250. Her best friend’s names were Janice, Shirley, Dolores, Betty, and Judy. In high school, her best friend’s name was Judy Rook. When she was approximately 12 years of age, she met Ryland Benthall Kearns, whom she would marry on July 1, 1960 in between her Junior and Senior year. Her first job was at a cleaners, and her boss’ name was Mr. Castle. Her and Ryland’s first home together was a 1 bedroom apartment in Alexandria, VA. Her favorite restaurant was called Hotshop, where the waiters would come and serve you outside. She enjoyed comedy shows on TV, such as Everybody Loves Raymond, Red Skeleton, and the Andy Griffith Show, which she would watch over and over again. She had five children, two boys and three girls, and was a loving mother to them. She later took an interest in fishing and liked to catch trout. She was extremely creative and liked to make quilts and cross-stitch. She also painted various things, such as rocks, pots and old saws. Her favorite things to collect were always angels, Indians, and wolves, which her house is covered in. She liked to record herself singing country music, which was her favorite kind of music, and later started to learn how to play the guitar. She enjoyed canning foods, such as pickles and green beans. She has traveled to El Paso, TX, for her first son’s wedding, Nashville,TN with two of her daughters, Orlando, FL (Disney World) with here family and mother and dad and Massanuten with her husband. She lived in the mountains in Purcellville, VA and loved to see the bears and deer come into her yard. She was a loyal and caring mother and grandmother and touched everyone’s lives that were fortunate enough to meet her.