Gloria Heatherington

For my mother, Gloria Heatherington, this period was from November 24, 1937 until September 3, 2020. Gloria was born in West Texas, near the town of Levelland to J.E. (Bill) Clardy and Tina Clardy. Gloria had four siblings: older sister Billie Faye (deceased), older brother Jesse (deceased), older brother Dick (Lubbock, Tx), and younger sister Donna (Duncan, Ok). Gloria loved West Texas and would be sure to tell you that any chance she could.

Gloria met Robert (Bob) Brightwell while he was stationed in West Texas in the U.S. Air Force. They married when she was 18 and my father was 20. After marrying, they moved to the Louisville, Ky area, where Gloria lived most of her life. My mother was told that she would never be able to have children. Much to her surprise, she became pregnant with me (Robert Scott Brightwell) after her and my father had been married eleven years. I was the only child my mother had. Gloria also leaves behind a daughter-in-law, Janice, and three grandchildren: Hannah, Haley, and Jordan.

Gloria and Bob divorced in 1976 after a twenty-three-year marriage. Gloria remarried Jim Heatherington in 1980 and they remained married until Jim’s death in 1989.

Through her life, Gloria worked as a school bus driver for Jefferson County Public Schools, the Anchorage Independent Public School as a teacher’s aide, and at Central State Hospital as a patient aide. She was also a graduate of the University of Louisville, where she completed her bachelor’s degree in Sociology.

Gloria was a member of Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Ky for forty years, where she was an active member until developing dementia.

Our family would like to especially thank everyone at Riverbend Assisted Living in Jeffersonville, where Gloria was a resident for seven years. We would also like to thank everyone at Autumn Woods Assisted Living in New Albany, where Gloria was moved after her most recent hospital stay. Both facilities provided excellent and compassionate care for Gloria, and we will be forever grateful. We would also like to thank the many people from Southeast Christian Church that would bring Gloria communion every Sunday. Lastly, our family would like to thank everyone from Southern Care Hospice Services, who provided great care for my mother (both times she was in Hospice care).

The Funeral Service will be Monday, September 14, 2020 at 2:00pm at Evergreen Funeral Home, 4623 Preston Highway, Louisville, Ky 40213. Visitation is Monday from 11:00 am until the time of the service at the funeral home. Gloria will be entombed in Walnut Ridge Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, we kindly ask that you donate to your church or to a local Hospice organization.

Online condolences can be left at www.Evergreen-Louisville.com.