Gloria Covel

Gloria Pratdesaba (Covel) was born on February 6, 1927, in Mexico City, during the Persecution of Catholics under Plutarco Calles.  Shortly thereafter, the family moved to Guatemala City where Gloria grew up.  In 1954, she came to live with her sister, Maria, and her husband, in Vancouver, WA, and trained to be a Licensed Vocational Nurse.  She got a job at Vancouver Memorial Hospital, where she met her husband, Elwin Covel.   They were married on Christmas Eve, 1955.  The couple moved to Southern California with their three children, Larry, Alita and David, in 1960.  There they had their fourth child, Annette, in 1964.  The family moved to Artesia in 1972.  Gloria's husband passed away in early 1973, leaving her a widow at the age of 45.  She provided for her family as a single mom by working the night shift at St. Francis Hospital in Lynwood, where she would be employed for 36 years.
Gloria's strong Catholic faith kept the family close, secure and rich in love.  Her faith, too, gave her incredible courage that helped her face her greatest fears, never running from the problems that met her along the way.  So many qualities went into making her the remarkable woman that she was.  Those who knew her best will agree, she was often feisty, willful, a live-wire, sassy, had a unique sense of humor and a no-nonsense practicality, with room for playfulness as well (even her grandchildren remember how she would stop whatever she was doing every afternoon to dance to the TV "Duck Tales" song for all the little ones in her own inimitable style).
These qualities, woven together with an unflagging sense of duty, a quick generosity, and a genuine concern for others, made her an amazing woman who dauntlessly lived out a life that helped to lend strength and purpose to those around her.