Obituary for Gladys E. Trefny (Glace)
Gladys E. Trefny passed away on November 29, 2020, at Hospice and Community Care, Mount Joy, PA. She turned 104 on October 26th. When interviewed on her birthday about her longevity, she quipped, “It took a long time to get here.” For the past two and a half years, Gladys had been attentively assisted by the staff at St John’s Herr Estate in Columbia, PA.
Gladys was born to Frank and Myrtle Glace in 1916 in Catskill, NY, along the Hudson River at a time when the river upstate still froze. She remembered walking on it to meet her father as he returned from work as a steam-shovel operator. As a girl, she moved to the borough of Queens in New York City and attended public school where she enjoyed poetry and public speaking. At that time she was introduced to the New York City Library which contributed to her being a life long learner and reader. Gladys attended Pace University and worked for a bank on Wall Street.
She married John Trefny in 1940. A few years later, they moved to Hatboro, PA, where they raised their two children. Never shy and always stylish, Gladys enjoyed entertaining people in her home, was active at St. John’s Lutheran Church, Hatboro, as a Sunday school teacher and volunteer, and was involved with scouting and the Upper Moreland PTA. After Hatboro, Gladys and John moved to Fairfield, CT and Farmington Hills, MI. In 1978, they retired to Lititz to be closer to their son and his family. Their daughter raised her family in Chile. Gladys and John were faithful members of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Lititz.
After John’s death, her loving neighbors visited her often to keep her company. Gladys entertained the children who stopped after school with cookies and stories about her life. She continued to keep her mind sharp until her death by reading historical fiction, the New Yorker and the world atlas. She regularly practiced reciting all the countries in Africa before she fell asleep at night.
She was preceded in death by her husband of 74 years; a daughter, Suzanne Trefny Mengin and a granddaughter, Lauren Elizabeth Trefny.
She is survived by her son Scott, his wife, Jeanette of Lititz; her son- in- law, Felipe Mengin of Santiago, Chile; grandchildren, Paul, husband of Terry Trefny of Denver, Gretchen, wife of Jason Sears of Philadelphia, Dominique, wife of Rodrigo Ursua of Puerto Montt, Daniele Mengin of Santiago, Nicole Mengin of Paris, Catherine, wife of Adrian Wellman of London, Jean Paul Mengin of Linares; great-grandchildren, Andrew, Owen, Nathaniel, Laura, Victoria, Natalia, Estella, Marco, Isadora, Hans, Julian, Vicente, Ben, Sophia and Eloi; a sister, Lorraine Ramsey of Clinton, Mississippi, and many nieces and nephews.
Services will be private at the convenience of the family at this time.
Donations in memory of Gladys may be made to Ephrata Public Library, 550 South Reading Road, Ephrata, PA, 17522, Hospice and Community Care, P. O. Box 4125, Lancaster, PA, 17604 and St Paul Lutheran Church, 200 West Orange Street, Lititz, PA, 17543.
Arrangements by Stradling Funeral Homes, Inc., Akron/Ephrata.
Gladys was born to Frank and Myrtle Glace in 1916 in Catskill, NY, along the Hudson River at a time when the river upstate still froze. She remembered walking on it to meet her father as he returned from work as a steam-shovel operator. As a girl, she moved to the borough of Queens in New York City and attended public school where she enjoyed poetry and public speaking. At that time she was introduced to the New York City Library which contributed to her being a life long learner and reader. Gladys attended Pace University and worked for a bank on Wall Street.
She married John Trefny in 1940. A few years later, they moved to Hatboro, PA, where they raised their two children. Never shy and always stylish, Gladys enjoyed entertaining people in her home, was active at St. John’s Lutheran Church, Hatboro, as a Sunday school teacher and volunteer, and was involved with scouting and the Upper Moreland PTA. After Hatboro, Gladys and John moved to Fairfield, CT and Farmington Hills, MI. In 1978, they retired to Lititz to be closer to their son and his family. Their daughter raised her family in Chile. Gladys and John were faithful members of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Lititz.
After John’s death, her loving neighbors visited her often to keep her company. Gladys entertained the children who stopped after school with cookies and stories about her life. She continued to keep her mind sharp until her death by reading historical fiction, the New Yorker and the world atlas. She regularly practiced reciting all the countries in Africa before she fell asleep at night.
She was preceded in death by her husband of 74 years; a daughter, Suzanne Trefny Mengin and a granddaughter, Lauren Elizabeth Trefny.
She is survived by her son Scott, his wife, Jeanette of Lititz; her son- in- law, Felipe Mengin of Santiago, Chile; grandchildren, Paul, husband of Terry Trefny of Denver, Gretchen, wife of Jason Sears of Philadelphia, Dominique, wife of Rodrigo Ursua of Puerto Montt, Daniele Mengin of Santiago, Nicole Mengin of Paris, Catherine, wife of Adrian Wellman of London, Jean Paul Mengin of Linares; great-grandchildren, Andrew, Owen, Nathaniel, Laura, Victoria, Natalia, Estella, Marco, Isadora, Hans, Julian, Vicente, Ben, Sophia and Eloi; a sister, Lorraine Ramsey of Clinton, Mississippi, and many nieces and nephews.
Services will be private at the convenience of the family at this time.
Donations in memory of Gladys may be made to Ephrata Public Library, 550 South Reading Road, Ephrata, PA, 17522, Hospice and Community Care, P. O. Box 4125, Lancaster, PA, 17604 and St Paul Lutheran Church, 200 West Orange Street, Lititz, PA, 17543.
Arrangements by Stradling Funeral Homes, Inc., Akron/Ephrata.