The daughter of William and Sylva Ava Tish Foster, Gladys was born March 4, 1921, on her parent's farm in rural Grinnell. She attended Maple Grove #8 and Washington #1 rural schools near her home and was a 1939 graduate of Grinnell High School. She was married to Marvin Dale Stowe and to this union one son was born, Dennis Lynn Stowe. She made her home in Grinnell and worked long and hard as a cab driver and as a store clerk at J.C. Penny's for several years. She later was a long-time employee of General Telephone of Central Iowa and then G.T.E of the Midwest working up from telephone operator to supervisor of various departments. She retired in 1987. She had been a resident of Friendship Manor in Grinnell since 1997. Gladys was a member of the First Baptist Church in Grinnell. She took great pride in caring for her home and yard, and enjoyed tending to her garden, needle work, and cooking. She loved to fly in small planes with her son as pilot. Survivors include one son, Dennis of Carlisle; one sister, Lola Baustian of Grinnell; and one niece, Denise Baustian of Grinnell. Gladys died March 11, 2004, at Friendship Manor, at the age of 83. She was preceded in death by her parents and her son's father, Marvin Stowe.