Gloria Joan Mayo, 91, passed away on June 15, 2020 at the Hunt Regional Medical Center. Funeral services will be held on Monday, June 22, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. at Highland Terrace Baptist Church, Greenville, with Dr. Chet Haney officiating, and a music celebration led by members of the Singing Men of North Central Texas. Burial will follow at Memoryland Memorial Park for the family only. Visitation will be held on Monday, June 22, 2020 from 8:00 a.m. to 12 noon at Coker-Mathews Funeral Home.
Gloria was born in Shreveport, Louisiana on December 24, 1928 to George Herman and Margaret M. Fuller Hink. She attended William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri, then graduated from Ouachita Baptist College in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. While attending Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, intent on becoming a foreign missionary, she was persuaded to try a different mission field, the life of a Southern Baptist Minister of Music's wife. Gloria was wed to Charles Mayo on July 14, 1953 at Pulaski Heights Baptist Church in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Gloria was a member of Highland Terrace Baptist Church and lived a life devoted to God, her husband and children, with a lifelong passion for music, art, beauty and growing things. She taught hundreds of children to love music through private piano and voice lessons, and directing primary choirs in various Southern Baptist churches. In the mid-1960's, Gloria was an active participant in curriculum design for primary choirs in the Southern Baptist Convention. After earning a Master's degree in elementary education from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Gloria taught in public and private schools in Benton, Ozark, and Waldron, Arkansas, and Wolfe City and Greenville, Texas. Her favorite grades with which to work were kindergarten through 3rd, "the little ones", as she said. She was always gratified to see "the light come on" and the joy on their faces when they learned something new that would accompany them throughout their lifetime.
Gloria was a church pianist, organist and choir member. She raised vegetable gardens, prize-winning iris, and won numerous awards for flower arrangements. Always the teacher, in retirement she taught hydro-aerobics at the Greenville YMCA. Her other retirement passions were painting beautiful flowers to give to those she loved, traveling the world on mission trips with the Singing Men of North Central Texas, assisting and visiting her children and grandchildren, and taking cruises with the love of her life! She taught her children to be gracious and to cook, her girls how to sew and host a party. When life was difficult, she never worried, she prayed!
Gloria is survived by her husband, Charles Mayo of Greenville; children, George Mayo and wife Christine of Conway, Arkansas, Marjo Mayo and companion Mike Willey of Hurst, Steve Mayo and wife Karen of Waco, Lynn Hoffman and husband Eric of Rowlett; grandchildren, Katie Arnold, Emily Hoffman, Kathryn Mayo, Grace Hoffman, Eamonn Mayo and Ethan Mayo.
Gloria is preceded in death by her parents.
Pallbearers will be Eric Hoffman, David Mayo, Eamonn Mayo, George Mayo, Larry Mayo and Steve Mayo.
In lieu of flowers, the family respectfully requests that honorarium gifts be directed to The Singing Men of North Central Texas http://www.smonct.org/ or Highland Terrace Baptist Church.