Gabriele (Gabe) Langdon

Gabriele (Gabe) Langdon, 93 August 13, 1920--February 22, 2014 Bloomington--Gabriele Langdon died Saturday, February 22, at Bell Trace Health and Living Center in Bloomington, Indiana. Gabriele was born in Marion, Indiana, on August 13, 1920. She was the third of three children. Her two brothers died before she was born, but she grew up in a family of cousins, grandparents, and aunts and uncles. Gabriele attended Marion College and Ball State Teacher's College (later Ball State University), where she met Bertrand Langdon, whom she later married on December 25, 1943, in Muncie, Indiana. She received her BA from Ball State and worked as a reporter and editorial writer for theMarion (Indiana) Chronicleuntil her first child was born in 1946. She later returned to Ball State to complete her MA degree. From 1959 to 1980 she taught art and English, most recently at New Castle (Indiana) Junior High School. Gabriele was a member of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Bloomington, Indiana, and was one of the founders of the GLBT Welcoming Congregation. Gabriele was a visual artist and writer. She created works primarily in watercolor and collage. In her later years, she was an avid student of and writer of Haiku poetry. She wrote several books of Haiku, including "The Other Web" and "Maiku." She enjoyed making her own books and sharing them with family and friends. Her last project was to assemble books of letters, photographs, and stories for each of her children and grandchildren, an undertaking cut short by her sudden passing. She loved gardening and raising flowers, especially irises of many colors and varieties; feeding the neighborhood birds and squirrels; surfing the Internet to learn about any matter she was concerned with at the time; emailing and writing letters to friends; and watching old episodes of Star Trek with her daughter, Inga, who cared for her in her home during the last three years of her life. She was a kind friend who practiced tolerance, forgiveness, and generosity. She was a giving, caring mother. In keeping with Gabriele's love of poetry and nature, her death was marked by a rainbow circling the setting sun and three geese flying toward the eastern sky. She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband, Bertrand Langdon, who died in 1989 in Bloomington. Survivors include daughters Carol Langdon (husband Dennis Ellerman), Inga Uwais, and Wendy Langdon, of Bloomington; granddaughters Cara Hale-Hanes (wife Heidi Hale-Hanes) of Long Beach, California, and Jena Hanes (husband James Gilbert) of Bloomington; and great granddaughters Kalina and Annika Gilbert, of Bloomington, and Camryn Hale-Hanes, of Long Beach, California. A memorial service will be held Sunday, March 9, at 3:00 p.m. in the Unitarian Universalist Church of Bloomington. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you make contributions to the Unitarian Universalist Church of Bloomington. Allen Funeral Home is handling arrangements. Friends can send condolences to www.allenfuneralhome.org

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Gabriele (Gabe) Langdon

August 13, 1920 - February 22, 2014