Obituary of Dolores Gaddy

Dolores Wilma (Hendricks) Gaddy passed away Saturday, October 12, 2013 at the Simla Good Samaritan Center with all three of her sons at her side. Dolores had been a resident at the facility since June of 2010. She lived her entire life in the Simla community. She was 82 years old. Dolores was born August 16, 1931. She was the second of five children born to Evert and Olive Hendricks. At the time Dolores was born, the family lived south of Ramah. The family eventually made their home seven miles southeast of Simla on the farm that is now the Derald Hendricks place. Dolores attended a one-room country school called Glaser School until she transferred to Simla High School, graduating in 1949. Dolores worked in Colorado Springs for a few years before she met and married Joseph Everett Gaddy. They had three sons, Rick, born in 1953, Monty, born in 1954, and Lonny, born in 1957. The family lived in Simla, Colorado. Everett ran his own trucking company, Gaddy Truck Service. Dolores helped with the business and worked as a homemaker. Dolores and Everett separated in 1964 and Everett moved to Deming, New Mexico. Their divorce was finalized July 1, 1965. Dolores and her sons continued to live in the Gaddy residence at 100 Ute Avenue until a propane explosion ripped through the home in November of 1964. Evert and Olive Hendricks welcomed their daughter and grandsons into the Hendricks farmhouse southeast of Simla. Dolores and her sons later moved a mile east into a farmhouse known as the Felch Place. They returned to the Gaddy home in Simla after repairs were completed, thanks in no small part to the diligence and generosity of Dolores’ brother Derald, who proved to be pretty handy with a hammer. While raising her three sons Dolores worked as a waitress and as an Avon representative before she went to work for George Kobolt, owner of the Simla newspaper, Ranchland Farm News. She was Office Manager at the newspaper for approximately thirty years. Dolores loved to play the piano for her own enjoyment. She had a great love of animals and she always took it quite hard when one of her pets passed away. Down through the years the Gaddy place, with the big barn out back, was home to horses, cows, pigs, goats, chickens, parakeets, dogs and cats. Dolores always attended a local church, first the Simla Evangelical United Brethren Church, then the Simla Neighborhood Bible Church, and then the Living Word Community Church in Calhan, Colorado. While she had other interests and activities, Dolores was primarily dedicated to raising her three sons. She also served as caregiver to both her father and mother in their latter years. Family members who preceded Dolores in death were her sister Judy, her parents Evert and Olive Hendricks, sisters-in-law Barb "Moore" Hendricks (Derald‘s wife) and Barbara "Koehn" Hendricks (Ted's wife). Dolores is survived by her sons, Rick of Burlington, Monty and his wife Becky of Calhan, and Lonny of Simla. Dolores leaves behind five grandchildren, Travis Gaddy, Jason Gaddy, Ryan Gaddy, Mindy Gaddy and, Megan "Gaddy" King, and one great grandchild, Jason Joseph Jr. Dolores is also survived by her three brothers, Don Hendricks and wife Ruth, Derald Hendricks and Ted Hendricks, all of rural Simla, plus many nieces, nephews and cousins.