Gloria Beachey

November 02, 1948 - July 14, 2025

Obituary

Gloria Annette Birky Beachey, 76, passed away on July 14, 2025, after fighting off a series of deadly diseases and life-altering accidents throughout her whole life.

Gloria was born on November 2, 1948, to Richard and Katie Anna Birky in La Junta, CO. After Gloria graduated in 1966 from Adair High School in Oklahoma, she attended Hesston College in Kansas for one year where she met Duane Beachey whom she would later marry. She went on to earn her bachelor's degree in nursing, at Oklahoma University. More than 20 years later she earned a master's degree in Adult Education from Texas A&M, Kingsville.

Gloria married Duane on June 12, 1970. Gloria and Duane went on to have two daughters, Carissa and Sarah.

Gloria held many different titles throughout her life – nurse, wife, mother, Adult ESL teacher and trainer, SWAP administrator with MCC in Appalachia, grandmother, accomplished seamstress and jewelry maker.

Gloria put down roots in many communities throughout her life, including Adair, OK; Spencer, OK; San Antonio, TX; Whitesburg, KY; and Madison, WI. She and Duane served in Mennonite Voluntary Service for 11 years. Then 20 years later served with Mennonite Central Committee for 8 years. Gloria became fluent in Spanish and traveled extensively in El Salvador during the mid 80’s providing medical services to rural, war-torn communities and made some lifelong friends in the process.

Gloria was predeceased by her parents, Richard and Katie Anna Birky; niece, Heather Beachey Hayes; sister-in-law, Mary Birky, and parents-in-law, Henry and Sarah Beachey. She is survived by her siblings, Janice Eckels, Dwight (Mary Lou) Birky, and Judi Gulotta; brother- in-law, Dale (Verda) Beachey; sisters-in-law, Jeanie (Wayne) Harris, Ruth (Tony) Moreland, and Carly (Brian) Derstine; husband, Duane Beachey; daughters Carissa (Jay) Christner and Sarah (Shawn) Snider; grandchildren, Colin and Luke Snider and Gabriel and Isadora Christner, as well as multitudes of beloved nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews, great-grands and too many dear friends to list here. Gloria was an amazing listener, was not afraid to make snarky comments, and made everyone who knew her feel welcomed, seen and loved, and then wondered aloud to Duane why people liked her!

Services will be held at Madison Mennonite Church (1501 Gilbert Rd, Madison, Wisconsin) on August 1, 2025, at 4:00. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the National Immigrant Justice Center or American Gateways – two organizations that help and protect immigrants, a cause about which Gloria cared deeply.

To view her obituary or leave a memory, please visit: www.ryanfuneralservice.com.

Ryan Funeral Home & Cremation Services
Verona Chapel
220 Enterprise Drive
608-845-6625

Events

Memorial Service

Fri Aug 1, 2025 @ 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM CST

Madison Mennonite Church • 1501 Gilbert Rd, Madison, WI 53711

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Irene Schertz

Family • 6 months ago

I met Gloria in the mid seventies when she and Duane lived in Middlebury, IN for awhile. She was married to my then husband’s cousin. My 3 children were born between 1973 and 1976 and that is how I got to know her intimately. I liked her from the start. It wasn’t a difficult thing to do. My second child was a daughter who we named Karisa. She had Down Syndrome and an AV canal which meant that her heart had an opening between the two sides. In 1974 those kinds of defects were not understood nearly as well as they are today. Her cardiology team at Riley Children’s hospital told us that they believed she was a candidate for surgical correction but wanted to wait till she weighed around 35 pounds because they believed there was a greater chance of survival if they did that. It was an extremely stressful time for us and, almost magically, that is when Gloria and Duane arrived. We became good friends and Gloria became my most trusted confidante besides my husband and my parents. I felt completely safe telling her things I didn’t tell anyone else - how difficult it was to keep a brave front when inside I was torn to pieces and not at all brave or strong. I was depressed, angry and kinda hated the world. Nine months after Karisa’s birth I found I was pregnant with our third child. If it hadn’t been for Gloria I am not certain I would have survived this time in my life with any success. There was a network of people who helped Bob and I weather this time but Gloria had a special skill. In my darkest moments when I felt the most anger, depression and like I was toppling into an abyss, Gloria listened and loved with a total lack of judgment no matter what I said or felt or how I expressed it. She calmed me by her nonjudgmental listening presence. My daughter died when she was 4 following her open heart surgery. Gloria and Duane named their first child with a variation of Karisa’s name. Unfortunately over the years we lost touch due to life taking us in different geographical directions and the busyness of life. Despite that, Gloria was a permanent part of who I am and I cherish that part of me as much as I loved her. Thank you my friend.