Mary Elmeda Kelly
1899 - 1997 (98 years)
Generation: 1
Generation: 2
Generation: 3
1. Mary Elmeda Kelly was born on 24 Apr 1899 in Saratoga, Wyoming; died on 18 May 1997 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming; was buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming. Notes:
Mary E. Gardner
Riverton – Funeral services for Mary E. Gardner, 98, will be held today at 10 a.m. at the United Methodist Church of Riverton with the Rev. Barry Tagart officiating. Burial will follow at Mountain View Cemetery.
Mrs. Gardner died May 18, 1997, at Wind River Healthcare in Riverton.
She was born April 24, 1899, in Saratoga, the daughter of Lua Otis Kelly and Margaret (Mauk) Kelly. They spent a short time in Fort Steele before moving to Kaycee and then to Riverton by covered wagon when she was 12 years old.
Her grandparents and parents had come to the Wyoming Territory in the late 1870s and early 1880s, settling in the Saratoga and Dixon areas. She attended school at Kaycee, at Delfelder rural school in Fremont County and completed the 11th grade at Riverton High School in 1915.
She married Jess Lee Gardner on Dec. 22, 1917, in Riverton. They spent the remainder of that winter in a walled tent on Union Pass, while Mr. Gardner worked timber.
After World War I, they farmed in the Arapahoe and Morton area until 1938 when they moved to Riverton.
She was a member of the United Methodist Church of Riverton.
She was a homemaker and worked in ladies ready-to-wear at the J.M. McDonald Company.
She enjoyed crocheting and continued with the craft until just before her death. She also enjoyed other crafts and loved to visit with family and friends.
She was a 70-year member of the Order of the Eastern Star, a 61-year member of the Fremont County Extension Homemakers Council and a 59-year member of the American Legion Auxiliary.
She also belonged to the Historical Society, Rebekahs and was a charter member of the Riverview Extension Club.
Survivors include a daughter, Mary Donelson of Riverton; two daughters-in-law, Verna and Louise Gardner of Arizona; five grandchildren, eight great-grandchildren, a sister, Stella Gardner of Riverton; a sister-in-law and numerous nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her husband on Dec. 18, 1957, three sons, Jess Lee Jr., Eugene and Gerald Gardner; a son-in-law and three brothers, Bert, Earl and Glenn Kelly.
Memorials may be made to the charity of the donor’s choice.
The Davis Funeral Home of Riverton is in charge of arrangements.
Casper Star-Tribune, Casper, Wyoming. Wednesday, 21 May 1997.
Buried:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/25990872/mary-elmeda-gardnerMary married Jesse Lee Gardner on 22 Dec 1917 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming. Jesse (son of Charles Emmett Gardner and Emma Annaliza Hedges) was born on 30 Apr 1893 in Purdin, Linn County, Missouri; died on 18 Dec 1957 in Cheyene, Wyoming; was buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]
Children:
- 2. Gerald George Gardner
was born on 25 Nov 1922 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming; died on 6 Dec 1990 in Casa Grande, Pinal County, Arizona; was buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming. - 3. Mary Bell Gardner was born on 23 Mar 1924 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming; died on 20 Oct 2010 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming; was buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming.
- 4. Eugene Kelly Gardner was born on 10 May 1920 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming; died on 14 May 1995 in Absarokee, Stillwater County, Montana; was buried in Rosebud Cemetery, Stillwater County, Montana.
- 2. Gerald George Gardner
Generation: 2
2. Gerald George Gardner (1.Mary1) was born on 25 Nov 1922 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming; died on 6 Dec 1990 in Casa Grande, Pinal County, Arizona; was buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming. Other Events:
- Occupation: meat cutter and grocery store owner
Notes:
Gerald George Gardner
Casper – Memorial services for former Casper resident, Gerald George Gardner, 68, will be conducted Tuesday at 2 p.m. at the Cole and Maud Mortuary in Casa Grande, Ariz.
Mr. Gardner, who had moved to Arizona from Wyoming in 1976, died Dec. 6, 1990, in Casa Grande. He was born in Riverton.
Mr. Gardner was a meat cutter for 50 years. He owned and operated a meat market and the Elk Street Grocery in Casper. He retired in 1977. He was a member of the Christian Church in Casa Grande, the Casa Grande Valley Elks Lodge NO.1957, and the Meat Cutter Union.
He is survived by his widow, Verna Gardner, of Casa Grande, one daughter, Helen Burns of Mesa, Ariz.; his mother, Mrs. Mary Gardner of Riverton; one sister, Mary Bell Donelson, of Riverton; one brother, Gene Gardner of Absarokee, Wyo.; and two grandchildren.
Casper Star-Tribune, Casper, Wyoming. Saturday, 8 December 1990.
Buried:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/25990870/gerald-g_-gardnerFamily/Spouse: Verna M. Shellenbarger. Verna was born on 2 Feb 1915 in Kansas; died on 14 May 2001; was buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]
3. Mary Bell Gardner (1.Mary1) was born on 23 Mar 1924 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming; died on 20 Oct 2010 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming; was buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming. Notes:
Mary B. (Gardner) Donelson, 86 of Riverton, died on Friday, Oct. 22, 2010 at the Help for Health Hospice Home in Riverton.
Cremation has taken place. Inurnment will take place at Mountain View Cemetery at 10 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 29, followed by a memorial service at 11 a.m. at the Davis Funeral Home of Riverton. The Rev. Ed Murray will officiate.
Mary Belle Gardner was born in Riverton on March 23, 1924, to Mary and Jess Gardner. Her family lived on Riverview and later at Arapahoe and Morton, before returning to Riverton where her father built Riverton's first livestock auction. She was graduated from Riverton High School in 1940 and attended the University of Wyoming.
She and Richard "Dick" Donelson were married in 1942. They lived in Texas, Georgia, and Florida while Mr. Donelson was in the Army Air Corps. In 1945, Mrs. Donelson moved back to Riverton.
Following the end of WWII, Mr. and Mrs. Donelson farmed in the Buckhorn Flats community for many years. They retired in 1988 and moved into Riverton.
Mr. and Mrs. Donelson were actively involved in conservation work on both a local and regional level and traveled extensively to National Association of Conservation Districts meetings.
Mrs. Donelson was active as a 4-H leader for many years and volunteered at 4-H camps and Fremont County and Wyoming State Fairs. In 1969, she was chosen as the Riverton Chamber of Commerce Agriculture Woman of the Year.
She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, a long-time member of the Buckhorn Flats Extension Club, Order of the Eastern Star, Rebekah Lodge, and a life-time member of the VFW Auxiliary.
In their retirement, Mr. and Mrs. Donelson traveled extensively throughout the continental U.S., and to Hawaii and China.
Their family said they enjoyed boating, camping, horseback riding and spending time with family. In addition, Mrs. Donelson was described as an accomplished seamstress and enjoyed gardening and reading. In her later year, she became computer literate and worked extensively with genealogy.
Mrs. Donelson is survived by her sons, Mike and his wife Charlotte of Riverton, and Bill of Centennial, Colo.; daughter, Shirley Donelson of Riverton; granddaughter, Stacey Donelson and her husband Rob Underwood and great grandson Owen Donelson Underwood of Boulder, Colo.; grandson, Eric Donelson, his wife Heidi and great granddaughters Hailey Grace and Morgan Belle of Riverton; numerous nieces, nephews and cousins, and the family of Jim Fike Sr.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Dick; her mother and father; her brothers, Gerald "Jake" Gardner and his wife Verna Gardner, and Gene Gardner and his wife Louise Mazet Gardner, and by her fiancé, Jim Fike Sr.
Buried:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/101305615/mary-belle-donelsonMary married Richard Neal Donelson on 27 Sep 1942. Richard (son of William McKinley Donelson and Frieda Bernice Davis) was born on 19 Aug 1922 in Mason City, Custer County, Nebraska; died on 3 Apr 1997; was buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]
Children:
- 5. William Lee Donelson was born on 12 Jun 1955 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming; died on 3 Jul 2011 in Aomori, Japan; was buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming.
- 5. William Lee Donelson
4. Eugene Kelly Gardner (1.Mary1) was born on 10 May 1920 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming; died on 14 May 1995 in Absarokee, Stillwater County, Montana; was buried in Rosebud Cemetery, Stillwater County, Montana. Notes:
Buried:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/116287797/eugene-kelly-gardnerEugene married Louise Georgia Mazet on 28 Sep 1941. Louise was born on 11 Sep 1919 in Worland, Waskakel County, Wyoming; died on 1 Sep 2008 in Absarokee, Stillwater County, Montana; was buried in Rosebud Cemetery, Stillwater County, Montana. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]
Generation: 3
5. William Lee Donelson (3.Mary2, 1.Mary1) was born on 12 Jun 1955 in Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming; died on 3 Jul 2011 in Aomori, Japan; was buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming. Notes:
William L. "Bill" Donelson of Riverton and formerly of Centennial, Colo., died on Sunday, July 3, 2011, at Misawa Air Base, Japan.
William Lee Donelson was born on June 12, 1955, to Mary Belle (Gardner) Donelson and Richard N. Donelson in Riverton.
He was graduated from Riverton High School in 1973 and the University of Wyoming in 1977 with a degree in accounting. At the university he was active in Sigma Chi fraternity, Young Republicans, and collegiate 4-H. During college, he spent one summer in Washington, D.C., where he was an aide to U.S. Sen. Clifford Hansen. His family said this started his love of travel and, over the years, he was able to travel across most of the United States, South America, and Russia.
Mr. Donelson worked as an accountant in Casper and started several small businesses before he moved to Denver and was graduated from Denver Conservative Baptist Seminary with a Master of Divinity degree in counseling and worked as a counselor with churches in Denver. He started his private practice in Christian counseling, which ended in 2008 when he went overseas with Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, based in Iraq and Afghanistan as a counselor with KBR. He continued his counseling with Military and Family Life Consultant until his death. During his three years overseas, he was able to enjoy travel in many countries, including South Africa, Thailand, Germany, The Netherlands, Austria, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, and the Philippines.
Mr. Donelson is survived by his brother, Mike Donelson and his wife Charlotte; sister, Shirley Donelson; nephew, Eric and his wife Heidi; niece, Stacey and husband Rob; great nieces, Hailey and Morgan; great nephew, Owen; special friends, Don and Suzy Cooper; many cousins, and many national and international friends.
His parents preceded him in death.
Buried:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/101570286/william-lee-donelson