Florence Elizabeth Blake

March 9, 1918-May 1, 2018. Florence was born on the family ranch in Clarendon, TX to Artimesia Asenith (Burkey) Wiedman & Augustus Charles Wiedman. Her family moved to the Kiowa, Kansas area when she was two. She graduated from Kiowa High School as the only female member of the National Honor Society. At a time when females had recently been given the right to vote, & were not encouraged to pursue professions she went on to become a registered nurse- graduating from the Wesley School of Nursing in Wichita, KS in 1939. She met & married Walter P. Blake of Wichita in 1939. They moved to the family ranch in Camp Verde, AZ where Florence worked as a registered nurse in hospitals in Prescott & Jerome. She & her husband moved to Los Angeles before WWII so that he could attend radio school. When the war started they moved back to Wichita where she began a nursing career with E.D. Carter and, eventually, his son Mack Carter with whom she was both an office nurse & a surgical eye nurse. During this time, she & her husband owned a china & pottery shop (The House of Pottery) & raised their two children: Toni & Brad of Dallas, TX & Flagstaff, AZ. She was always a woman on the go yet somehow found time for her hobbies of gardening & quilting. Her nickname was “Flossie Rhizome” because of the prize iris she raised & shared with many. She helped care for & nurture her 4 grandchildren: Thor, Morgan, Harriet, & Amelia. In her later years she was blessed with 4 great grandchildren: Ellie, Davis, Daisy, & Wesley. Their families are Thor & Dana Herrin in Dallas, TX& Morgan & Katie Herrin in Richmond, VA. She loved & is loved by her many friends & relatives. Her spirit remains with us & always will. Graveside gathering at Resthaven, Wichita, KS June 4 at 1pm followed by Memories & Brunch @ the Fireside Room - Botanica Gardens, Wichita.