Shirley Pauley
Edwardsville |
Shirley Marie (Roberts) Pauley, 95, died Monday, September 4, 2023 at University Nursing and Rehab Center in Edwardsville.
Born December 30, 1927 in Indianapolis, IN, she was the daughter of Elbert A. and Delores (Euler) Roberts.
Shirley graduated from Granite City High School and attended Southern Illinois University and Gradwohl School of Laboratory Technology. As a teenager, she learned to fly at Midwest Flyers School of Aviation and subsequently worked at Lakeside Airport of Highway 111 near Collinsville. She was believed to be the youngest female parachutist at the time she made her first jump at Lakeside at the age of 18.
She was a member of the "Ninety Nines", the women's flyers group founded by Amelia Earhart, and the "Experimental Aircraft Association". She was a Warrant Officer in the Civil Air Patrol and taught basic aviation courses to cadets accepted to pilot training by the Army Air Corps. She was a draftsman at Scott Field, as was the first intern at KSD-TV in St. Louis when it was newly on the air.
Shirley was the third person to land an airplane, behind owners/operators Mil Walston and Gene Tumbleson, at the strip in the farmer's field which was, at first, "Walston Aviation", and was ultimately designated "St. Louis Regional Airport". The three flew airplanes daily from Lakeside until the certification as an airport was approved and the airplanes could be permanently parked there.
She was employed in various positions in news and advertising at the Granite City Press-Record, Madison County Daily News, Wood River Journal, and Alton Telegraph. Upon graduation from Gradwohl, she was employed as a laboratory technician and phlebotomist at St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Granite City.
Shirley remained an avid reader which fueled her profound curiosity about the world around her. She was well-informed and had a wealth of knowledge so she could discuss almost any topic. She loved to sketch, paint, and was a prolific writer, especially poetry. Her children's story, "Pocket Frog" is copyrighted and registered with the U.S. Library of Congress. She passed her love of the ballet to her two daughters, ensuring they saw the greatest ballet dancers including, world-renowned dancer, Rudolf Nureyev, whenever he was in St. Louis. She also loved attending the St. Louis Symphony.
A founding member and past president of the Great Rivers Chapter of Illinois Audubon Society, Shirley loved bird-watching and looked forward to the annual eagle counts along the bluffs of the Mississippi River. She was also a past member of the Sierra Club, always teaching about the importance of preserving the earth's natural resources for future generations.
Upon her retirement from the hospital in 2002, she moved to Lakeland, FL where she resided until 2006 when she returned to live in Bethalto and Wood River.
She is survived by her sons, Jon J. Greer of Moro, Darin (Traci) McCall of Branson, MO; daughter, Constance (Jim) Hickerson of Hartford; brother, Nelson Roberts of Monrovia, MD; 12 grandchildren; 10 great grandchildren; one great-great grandchild; and many nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents; daughter, Rebecca D. Greer-Tanner; son, Victor Christian Greer; sisters, Coni-Prez, Karol Kraus, Karen Butts; granddaughter, Meghan Marie Hickerson; and great grandson, Emmett Kraus.
Graveside funeral and burial will be conducted at 10 am, Thursday, September 7 at Rose Lawn Memory Gardens in Bethalto. Rev. Daryl Fansler will officiate.
Memorials may be made to Operation Smile, 4ocean, or the Meghan Hickerson Memorial Scholarship at St. Paul United Methodist Church.
Marks Mortuary in Wood River entrusted with arrangements.
Mark's Mortuary
