Gloria Morris, 89, of Longwood, FL and formerly of West Palm Beach, FL died peacefully on Wednesday, November 8, 2017 surrounded by her loving family at Hospice of the Comforter in Altamonte Springs, FL.
Gloria was a loving mother and grandmother and great friend to all who knew her well. She is preceded in death by her loving husband of 25 years, Richard Morris;Parents, Edith and Angelo Rodo.
Gloria was born on June 20, 1928 in Manhattan, NY. She moved to West Palm Beach with her father when she was a senior in high school and then attended Palm Beach Junior College. She was a registered nurse for over 35 years. While attending a Red Cross class, she fell in love with the instructor, Richard (Dick) Morris and they were married in January 1958. They moved to 2723 Holly Road and she lived there for 55 years. In October of 1960, they welcomed their only child, Patricia Irene (Patty) to their family.
She trained as a Nurse at Good Samaritan Hospital in West Palm Beach and then later worked in the emergency room and pediatrics ward at John F. Kennedy Hospital in Lake Worth. After she left the hospital setting, she worked for Palm Beach County as an occupational nurse for 10 years and finally retired at 60.
Gloria was a very active woman. In her earlier years, she enjoyed swimming, water skiing, and bowling. In addition, she always loved reading, bridge, crossword puzzles and of course watching and answering Jeopardy. On Saturday mornings you would find her riding her bike with her friend, Darlene, to local garage sales and sometimes returning to get her car to go pick up the big items she would find. She always loved a good deal. Another love was ballroom dancing which she did for most of her life on Friday nights and some Saturdays too. She was a very involved mother and one of the constant car drivers for her daughter Patty and all of her friends. At one time she even owned a station wagon, just to be able to take all the kids everywhere.
Gloria had a large family that followed her from New York and lived close to her. Her favorite Aunt, Lilly, even moved one street over from her. Every day they would be at each other's house. All holidays were spent with her family most of the time in Hollywood. She enjoyed traveling and went to Europe a few times and on many cruises. She was active in the American Italian Club, a bridge club, and a dancing club.
After spending most of her life in West Palm Beach, she moved to the retirement community, Village on the Green in Longwood FL to be closer to her daughter. She had her own apartment there and made many new friends. She enjoyed all the parties they had each month, joined several bridge clubs, participated in the Wii bowling league and water aerobics classes. She liked getting her hair done each week and especially enjoyed the food.
Gloria is survived by her daughter, Patty Montanez of Longwood and her son-in-law, Elvin Montanez and her two grandsons, Andrew (Drew) Montanez and Christopher (Chris) Montanez and many cousins.
She will have a Funeral Mass at Annunciation Catholic Church on Monday and then on Tuesday she will be laid to rest next to her husband with a graveside Catholic service at Hillcrest Memorial Park in West Palm Beach.