Yuma County, Colorado
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Yuma County, Colorado |
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January 20, 1927
2015 Joplin, Missouri Gail Boatman was 38 years old when she moved to Joplin. She had already put in 20 years of cross-country travel with her husband, Don Earl, in the ministry. But on a Labor Day weekend in 1952, she started a new adventure as the wife of the third president of Ozark Christian College (then Ozark Bible College). That memory, along with many more, came flooding back to this remarkable woman as she reminisced about her life last week during her 100th birthday celebration at Spring River Christian Village. By the way, she may have gone through a century of living, but you would never guess that after seeing the regimen Boatman keeps at the village. Her daily routine begins at 7 a.m., when she weighs herself then begins walking -- or trotting, as Linda Boles refers to her aunt's gait -- up and down the hallways. That extensive walking began 25 years ago when she and her husband moved into a Spring River duplex. Boatman walked hundreds of yards to the main building each day. When Don Earl died 10 years ago, she continued to walk, never taking elevators from her room at the multi-floor building. In fact, it wasn't long after Don Earl's death at 91 that she decided to take her walking to another level -- the competitive level, that is. She competed with 17 others at the facility in a walking contest. "I walked four hours a day for 10 straight days and won first prize, which was a china thing to put jewelry in," she said. Today, along with her walking, Boatman has added two half-hour tai chi classes a week. Despite being classified as legally blind, Boatman, who has written articles that have been published in Christian publications, still types letters on her own. Where there are no handrails available to help her get around Spring River, she might resort to a walker. But whatever it takes, she rarely asks for assistance. "I use my walker when I go long distance or am in a hurry because I don't want to fall," said Boatman, whose older sister lived to be 102. Her younger sister is 95. Gail, born and raised in Yuma, Colo., and Don Earl, a native Missourian, met at the San Bernardino (Calif.) Church of Christ in 1932 when she was 18 and he was a year older. While her husband had his eye on the ministry even then, Gail felt the calling to be a nurse and even served in that capacity for a few years. The Boatmans married three years later and spent the next 69 years of their lives together before Don Earl died in 2004. Two children were born of that union. Their daughter, Dona, taught high school in Joplin for 30 years and currently trains horses for shows around the nation. Their son, Roger, an OCC graduate, served as a minister for 25 years and is now working for a company that raises money for churches and Christian schools. Two of the Boatmans' granddaughters attended OCC, and one great-granddaughter is currently enrolled there. Gail said she received quite a surprise during the alumni banquet at the recent Preaching and Teaching Convention at OCC. She learned that Lynn Gardner is in the process of writing a book titled "The Life of Don Earl and Gail Boatman." Gardner taught 34 years at OCC, serving as academic dean for 17 of those years. He retired in 2006 and has eight books to his credit along with 100 articles that have been published in national magazines. |
December 25, 1948 Mr. and Mrs. M. L. Stephens of 2960 Muscupiabe drive, telephone 5-9338, are serving turkey dinner today to a large group of relatives. The party numbers Mr. Stephens' mother, Mrs. Leona Stephens, of Azusa; his brother-in-law and niece, Ivan Hart and daughter, Carol, of Sierra Madre; Mrs. Stephens' mother, Mrs. Lena Bulkeley, of Anaheim; Mrs. Stephens' niece, Diane Polltsch, of Pomona; Mr. and Mrs. T. J. Bradley (Bonnie Stephens) and twin sons, Tommy and Jonnie, Long Beach; Mr. and Mrs. Karl McGowen (Delores Stephens) and children, Stephen and Kathryn, Victorville; Mr. and Mrs. William Blatnick (Darlyne Stephens) and son, Terry. April 1947 "Mr. and Mrs. Karl McGowen welcomed a daughter at St. Bernardine's hospital Tuesday morning, April 22, at 5:45. She weighed five pounds, three, ounces, and has been named Kathryn Jean. Her mother is the former Dolores Stephens and the maternal grandparents are Mr. and Mrs. M. L. Stephens of 2960 Muscupiabe drive. The paternal grandparents are Mr. and Mrs. Walter McGowen of Rialto. Kathryn Jean has two great-grandmothers, Mrs. S. H. Bulkeley of Anaheim and Mrs. Preston Stephens of Azusa. She also has a brother, Stephen Lee, four years old." |
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