Barbara "Elaine" Gilliland

Barbara “Elaine” Gilliland, 73, of Bowring, was reunited in heaven with her beloved husband, Dwane, on Monday, October 17, 2022. Elaine was born September 8, 1949, in Durango, Colorado, to Hugo “Pat” LaRoy and Katherine (Slade) Willis. She was raised in Silverton, Colorado, and graduated high school there in 1967. After high school, she attended Ft. Lewis College in Durango to obtain a degree in nursing. She had not yet finished her degree when she met the love of her life Dwane at the pharmacy where she worked in 1968. The couple married on Nov. 12, 1969, putting a pause on her nursing degree and a start to a fulfilling life as a stay-at-home mom to Carol, Rachel, Dwane Jr., and Tom. The family moved to Bowring in 1971, where Elaine’s husband, Dwane, pastored the Bowring Baptist Church. The couple were members of the church for 45 years. During that time, Elaine was a very active member organizing the yearly conference the church hosted. When Elaine left nursing school and moved to Oklahoma, she made a promise to her mom she would complete her degree. With that goal in mind, she started back to school in the late 1980s to finish her licensure in Practical Nursing at the Tri County Technology Center in Bartlesville and later her Registered Nursing degree at Labette Community College. Elaine began her nursing career at Jane Phillips Medical Center in the Psychiatric Unit. She loved being a nurse and met some of her best friends at the hospital. She held many nursing positions that included being a hospice nurse, a floor nurse, and eventually retired as a case manager. Elaine will always be remembered for her huge heart, her giving spirit and her ability to make everyone feel loved and a part of her family. Her door was never locked and was open to anyone that visited whether it was a neighbor stopping by to say hello or her children’s friends showing up to hang out. She was happy to provide meals, advice, guidance or just a sweet smile and a lot of laughs. She did not know a stranger and her zest for life and positive attitude were contagious. She enjoyed staying home while her children were young, hosting numerous home-parties from tupperware to makeup to painting with acrylics. Elaine was a natural born caregiver, a voracious reader, she loved to travel and loved hosting Thanksgiving dinner for her family. Her kids remember cooking for days to prepare her annual Thanksgiving meal, no invitation needed, everyone just knew dinner was at 6:00! Elaine was an avid traveler taking yearly family vacations to Silverton. She also enjoyed her “Sistah” trips to various places, including Las Vegas; cruises; Hilton Head Island; Washington, D.C.; Nashville; Philadelphia; New York; Virginia Beach; Tri Cities, Tennessee; Jonesboro; Denver; and Waco. Elaine is survived by her four children, Carol Kelley and her husband Brett and their daughters, Brittany Knapp, husband Dan and their children; Presli, Audri, Daxon, Daisi and Dekker, Courtney Roberson and husband Will and their children Amelia and Emmitt. Rachel Mallinger and her husband Dean, Dwane Gilliland Jr., and Tom Gilliland, his wife Elizabeth and her precious grandson James Dwane who she was determined to meet in spite of the progression of her illness. She is survived by seven siblings, Patricia Stevens, Donna Tookey, Larry Willis, Robert Willis, Vicki Morris and her husband Jim, Lynne Peck and her husband Willie, and Jean Willis-Brown and her husband Clay; and numerous nieces and nephews and extended family members. She was preceded in death by her husband, Dwane, her parents, and a sister, Shirley Carter.

Barbara "Elaine" Gilliland

September 8, 1949 - October 17, 2022