MAGGIE RAWSON GRIDLEY
Born March 3, 1942, entered the kingdom of Heaven July 6, 2025. Born “Mertie”, but later in life changing her name to “Maggie”, Mom was born in Buffalo, NY and lived in Cheektowaga, NY before moving to Galeton, PA to be raised with her Paternal Uncle Harry and Aunt Mildred, gaining two “sisters” (first cousins) Nellie, recently deceased, and June, also recently deceased. Mom’s older sister Ann passed due to complications related to Alzheimer’s in May of 2020, one month shy of her 80th birthday. She leaves behind a brother, James Rawson of Garden Grove who also suffers from Alzheimer’s as did Mom. Mom also had severe kidney disease.
Growing up in Galeton, PA, Mom met and married her high school sweetheart, our Father, Bernard P Gridley, and they had 3 children: Timothy born in 1967, Margot born in 1968, and myself, Christopher born 2 weeks shy of my Father’s birthday in December of 1974. My parents married, and while my father joined the Army, my parents relocated to the Northern Virginia area near DC, which is where they raised their family, in Alexandria, VA. Unfortunately, my Father passed in February of 1983, and we moved to the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia, then Texas, eventually ending up in California.
Mom joined Cosmetology school when I was 4-5 years old, and raised 3 children as a hairdresser, eventually managing a world famous salon in Beverly Hills meeting Nancy Reagan, being taken out to lunch by Robert Downey Jr, amongst meeting so many famous people who she loved to share stories about, as well as teaching for Don Estes in the 90’s, and buying and running her own cosmetology school back in Harrisonburg, VA right after 9/11, where we moved with my almost 2 year old son Christopher, and where my youngest son Nathan was born in 2002. Mom came back to California about 10 years ago and once again did hair, eventually becoming an instructor for Milan Institute, where she made so many wonderful friends, including coworkers, students, as well as clients.
Mom lived and loved and gave everything 110%. Her hobbies included crocheting (I can’t count how many giant afghans she pumped out while living with Alzheimer’s), she loved Country dancing and attending the senior dances, “gabbing” as she called it on the phone with friends and relatives, she loved to travel, making 3-4 trips to Baja with me since she moved in with me in September, along with trips to Airbnbs in Three Rivers, Fish Camp, and most importantly visiting her brother in September when she arrived back to California, along with our loving cousin Laura Elmore (wife of my cousin Parke), and also visiting a close family friend Jules on the way home, both of whom have been incredibly supportive!
Judging by the outpouring of cards, flowers, plants, phone calls etc, Mom loved and was loved by so many I can’t keep count. Mom was especially proud of her relationship with God, and her lifelong belief in Christianity, which was sealed once again with the two of us being baptized as adults recently, one after the other, reconfirming our love for the Lord and desires to live according to his will, not our own.
My thanks go out to both Bristol Hospice of Visalia, for their amazing, Spiritual focus on Mom’s care, showing her the utmost care and compassion, as well as to Peers Lorentzen Funeral Services, most importantly Richard, who made this very difficult time in my life very simple, and treated my mother with the most compassionate care. Also, thank you to my wife, Rekah Gridley (Gonzalez), her Mother Delores Gonzalez, and my sons Christopher and Nathan for assisting me more and more as Mom’s disease worsened. I couldn’t have done it without you!
Mom’s celebration of life will be held at Tulare Church of Christ, 500 North Blackstone, Tulare California 93274 on Saturday, August 16th at 3:30 PM Pacific Time. For those who can not attend in person, the services will be live streamed to YouTube, as well as viewable afterwards on the platform. I’ll provide a link shortly both here and on both Mom’s and my Facebook pages.
Life will never be the same without you in it Mom, but I know you’re no longer suffering, and you’ve been reunited with Dad, along with everyone else who has been patiently awaiting your arrival in Heaven, especially your sister Anne, who you cared for as her health declined, and your Best Friend of 60 years (Eva) Jean Gallagher, of Va (Skip).
I’m making your final resting place, a mahogany box with a purple (your favorite color) cross on top, and I PROMISE to have it done on time! I love you and miss you so much, but I’m comforted that you’re in the arms of The Lord!
To send condolences or sign the family guest book, please CLICK HERE to send. Peers-Lorentzen Funeral Services is in charge of arrangements.