Virginia Gardner

(From Mason-Woodard Mortuary)

Virginia Devonda Gardner 2/14/1927-1/10/2025

A Real Sweetheart.

Known by her nieces and nephews as Aunt “Gingie,” and referred to by her father, our grandpa, as “Bighead.”

Virginia was born in Wyandotte, Ottawa County, Oklahoma to Henry Lehi “Lee” Lynch and Beulah Baker Lynch. She was sister to Nellie Alleman Lynch, Robert Lee Lynch, Leatha Lucille Taylor, and Cora Blanche Burch. 

She was preceded in death by her first husband, Hugh Wenbourne Roy, and her second husband, Charles Richard aka “Dick” Gardner, Senior. 

She is survived by nephews Jimmy Alleman and his wife Ginger of Miami, Oklahoma and Johnny Alleman of rural Quapaw ,Oklahoma , niece Beverly Lynch Lescard and her husband Rick of Siloam Springs, Arkansas, nephew Bobby Lynch and his wife, Maggie of rural Gentry, Arkansas , nephew Bill Burch of Neosho, Missouri , nephew David Taylor and wife, Donna, of Joplin, Missouri , nephew Paul Taylor and wife, Janet, of Webb City , Missouri and niece Marsha Taylor and husband Lester Conduff of the Springfield, Missouri area.

Virginia did not have any of her own children, which her nieces and nephews speculate may be the reason for her longevity. However, she did have hundreds of “classroom children” as she was an elementary teacher in Joplin, and southwest Missouri for over thirty years. While in Joplin, she primarily taught the fourth and fifth grade levels at Longfellow and Jefferson Schools. She graduated from Northeast Oklahoma A & M where she met her first husband and subsequently completed her master's degree in education at Pittsburg State University. Her first job as a teacher was in a small rural school where she taught all grades. She remarked to her family at the end of her first day teaching, “why in the world did I think I wanted to do this?” However, she persisted, continued her own education, joined teaching organizations and was a proud member of her profession. One of her closest friends was a fellow teacher, Betty Bowman. Her sister and best friend, Leatha Taylor, also attended Northeast Oklahoma and became a long-time teacher.

The home where Virginia grew up near Wyandotte had no running water, no electricity, and no plumbing. A spring a quarter of a mile away was the water source transported for drinking and bathing by horse wagon and team. The bathroom was the field just past the barn. Raising a family during the Depression made Grandpa and Grandma Lynch very aware of their poverty and fearful for their children’s survival but the stories that are recounted by their children spoke little of the hardships endured but instead lovingly of the riches they found in family, fun, and togetherness. These included the story of a family pet milk goat that ran the bases during their baseball games.
The Lynch family, sans Robert who was in the Marine Corps, moved to Oregon at the start of WW II to find work in factories and fields picking and canning produce. Leatha recounted the story of when she thought Virginia had not been working as hard picking green beans in the field as she should. Leatha sought retribution when Virginia, while lying on the ground resting, reached over with an outstretched hand to Leatha seeking a lunch sandwich. Leatha then quickly substituted an Oregon slug for the pickle in Virginia’s sandwich. Now that is plain Oklahoma onery. There were no degrees of separation between Virginia and Leatha. Although two years apart in age they acted like twins. Before Facebook and social media there was the telephone party line, so on Sunday afternoons Virginia, Leatha and Cora would spend hours catching up on the week’s events.

Virginia was a survivor. She survived two tornadoes. The first one was May 5, 1971, while she was home alone on east Newman Road. Growing up in Tornado Alley she knew to hide in the northeast corner of the house in a bathtub and survived unharmed except psychologically. A resident of the mobile home park next to her house was a fatality of that tornado. Her next direct tornado experience was on May 22, 2011, during the E5 Tornado which killed over 160 people. This time she was not alone, and her beloved husband, Dick, was there for her when they took shelter in the hallway of their residence on 29th Street in Joplin as a tree crashed into the corner of their bedroom. Ground zero where no structures were left standing was a mere three blocks away. We believe God loved Viriginia and said it is not your time once again.

By 2024 all her first-degree relatives had passed, away including her parents, brothers and sisters, her eldest niece Connie Alleman as well as her husband Dick who died on April 30. 2024. By this time Virginia, who had always prided herself on her accomplishments in education and her intelligence was suffering from memory loss, some of which was possibly helpful when it involved missing Dick and her family but also frustrating and bewildering in her daily life. After Dick died, Virginia moved to Memory Care near Springfield, Missouri so she could be near her caregiver, niece Marsha.

Virginia was able to attend the most recent Memorial Day Lynch family celebration held on May 25, 2024, at the Council House cemetery. This cemetery is near Wyandotte, Oklahoma where Virginia grew up and where her mother, father, big brother Bob who she so loved, big sister Nellie and niece Connie are all buried. During this family gathering, she was able to visit many of her nieces and nephews who brought her so much joy.

Thereafter, Virginia became increasingly frail. Soon after Christmas 2024 Virginia contracted a viral illness that progressed to pneumonia. She lost the will to try and survive any longer and God decided on January 10th it was time for her final Lynch reunion. She was at peace and comfortable when our sweetheart Gingie passed into the arms of those making up the Greatest Generation and the finest of people that I have ever known.

Service Details
Saturday, January 18th, 2025 2:00pm
Mason-Woodard Mortuary
3701 East 7th Street
Joplin, Missouri 64801

Interment
Ozark Memorial Park Cemetery
Address
415 N. St. Louis Ave.
Joplin, Missouri