Roberta Lee Gilliland Lane passed away peacefully at home on September 7. Her children were present and witness to a peaceful passage from this world to the next.
She was born November 22, 1930, in Agra, Kansas, the third child of Edwin and Florence (Faye) Gilliland. Her parents moved the family to Phillipsburg, Kansas when she was young. With the exception of a few years after graduating from high school in 1948, Phillipsburg was to be her home until January 1966.
In September 1952 she married Loren Dempsey Lane, recently discharged and returned from duty in Korea. High school sweethearts, they made their pledge that fall, and held true to it for the entirety of their 48 years together. Their union was blessed by the arrival of four children: Charles (1953), Loren David (1955), Susan (1957), and Tom (1959). During those years Roberta kept the household and lived deeply in the community of family and friends that had enfolded and nourished her since childhood. As the next decade unfolded, both Roberta and Loren were engaged in raising a rambunctious and energetic young family. However, by the mid-60’s a change was in the air…
In January 1966, Roberta and Loren moved the family to Hays, Kansas for them both to realize a shared goal: obtaining a college education. Loren graduated first (1968, a BA in Sociology), followed by Roberta in 1970 (BA in Elementary Education). Those years were an act of extraordinary teamwork between the two as there was also a household to maintain and children to raise.
Roberta’s career as an educator began in earnest after the family moved to Larned, Kansas in the Fall of 1971. For more than two decades she served the people of Pawnee County by educating their children - an obligation she considered a sacred trust. In the early years she was a circuit rider, substituting between Garfield, Larned, and Pawnee Rock. She then took on her long-term assignment as a 5th Grade teacher at Northside Elementary School in Larned. Even after retirement she could be found volunteering as a reading aide with children in the early grades.
Raised in the Methodist Church while growing up in Phillipsburg, Roberta continued her service to others at the First United Methodist Church in Hays, where she served in many ways, primarily working with the church youth. Roberta, Loren, and their family joined the First United Methodist Church in Larned upon arrival in 1971; she remained faithful to her Lord, her community, and her church in continuing service to others until her passing.
Loren passed away in November 2000. Moving forward into the late season of her life, she nevertheless lived and had her being in a great community of friends and family. The base was built upon her four children, seven grandchildren, and (over time) four great-grandchildren; however, the host was vast, including a large extended family and larger company of dear friends: “May I shine your light in my friendships, giving glory to you through all that I do, say, and think” (Col 3:12)
She is remembered.
She is remembered by the many students who passed the doorway into her classroom; their lives and works a testament to and a benediction on her commitment, compassion, and care.
She is remembered by her children as Mom; by her nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren as a source of unconditional love and support, always interested in what they were doing.
She is remembered as a steadfast, faithful servant of God; asking little for herself, encouraging excellence in others. When she encountered need, she provided help. When she encountered sorrow, she provided solace and support. When she encountered someone new, she acted with respect, kindness, and affirmation. Her love for and service to her Lord were manifest in her love for and service to those around her.
She is known by her Lord, in whose arms she now rests.
A Celebration of Life will be 10:00 a.m. Saturday, September 30, 2023 at Larned United Methodist Church with Pastor Joshua Bolding and Pastor Gary Stokes presiding. Visitation will be 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Friday, September 29, 2023 at Beckwith Mortuary, Larned, with family present from 4-6 p.m. Inurnment will be 3:30 p.m. Saturday, September 30, 2023 in Fairview Cemetery, Phillipsburg, Kansas.
Memorials may be given to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or Larned United Methodist Women in care of Beckwith Mortuary, PO Box 477, Larned, Kansas 67550. Personal condolences may be left at www.beckwithmortuary.com.