Beverly J. Gurtler

Wasilla resident Beverly J. Gurtler, 76 — wife mother, grandmother, teacher and citizen of the world — died Sunday, March 20, 2011, with her family near her at her home.

A celebration of Beverly’s life is at 4:30 p.m., April 9 at VFW Post 9365, 301 East Lake View Ave., Wasilla. Her family will spread her ashes near Seward.

Beverly was born Oct. 31, 1934, in Lancaster, Wisc. She grew up in Idaho and graduated in 1952 from South Freemont High School in St. Anthony, Idaho. She also attended Rick’s College where, with the help of a music scholarship and working nights as a waitress, she graduated with a Bachelor of Education in 1956. Beverly loved to travel and upon graduation traveled across the country to New York, where she boarded a ship for her first trip to Europe. She had many pen pals whom she visited and made lifelong friends. The year Alaska became a state, Bev loaded her car and drove up the Alcan Highway to Alaska, where she had been offered a teaching job in Anchorage. While there she met her husband, Ed, and they were married Aug. 5, 1960 in Twin Falls, Idaho.

After the birth of her two sons, Ed Jr. and Kresent, Bev settled with her family in the Mat-Su Valley, where she began a long and rewarding teaching career in Palmer. “Mrs. G,” as she was known to many of her students, taught junior high physical education. She developed a drill team and several other athletic programs during her 30-plus-year teaching career. Her drill teams travelled as far as southern California to march in events like the Rose Bowl Parade. During her summer months when she wasn’t traveling to some exotic location around the world, she would teach Red Cross swimming programs to a never-ending supply of students in the local lakes and streams. She was instrumental in getting pools and swimming programs in new high schools being built in the Valley in the 1970s. She continued teaching swimming long after her retirement. She took night school and summer classes and graduated from UAA with a Master of Education in 1976.

During the lean years, Bev would hunt and fish with her family to supplement their food. She was a crack shot with rifle and pistol and never missed what she aimed at. She could ride a horse, fly a plane, drive a snowmachine and double-clutch a truck. Beverly always had a love for music and was an accomplished musician who played clarinet and saxophone with several groups over the years. During the course of her life, Bev traveled to every continent except Antarctica. She had friends in many countries. She travelled to learn and to teach. She loved archeology and spent several months over the years on archeological digs in many countries. Upon her retirement she joined the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, where she became a valued member and earned many awards and citations. She could always be found at boat launches around the state in the summer doing volunteer safety inspections on all sizes and types of boats.

Beverly cared for children all over the world. During her lifetime, she had many children she supported to adulthood through organizations like Christians Children’s Fund and later Child Fund International. Upon her death she still had three children in different areas of the world she supported and cared for. Bev loved animals and could always be found with a trusted dog (or two) by her side. During her life, any who met her would have realized she was a force to be reckoned with, always vibrant and feisty, not afraid to speak her mind, but a loving and caring person until the end of her life. She could always be counted on to be there for anyone lucky enough to call her “friend.”

Beverly was preceded in death by her only sister, Denise Anderson. She is survived by her husband, Ed Gurtler Sr.; sons, Ed Gurtler Jr. and Kresent Gurtler; granddaughter, Livia Marie; nieces, Julie Anderson and Carol Woodvine; nephew, Roger Anderson; and several other relatives.

In lieu of flowers, Beverly wished donations to be made to Child Fund International, the ASPCA or your local animal shelter.

The family was cared for by Valley Funeral Home and Crematory, Wasilla.