Vera Gazaway

Vera Gazaway, 91, passed away Sept. 9, 2014, with loving family at her side.

Vera and her husband, HP Gazaway, along with their sons, Hal and Bruce, arrived in Alaska in September 1953 on the last voyage of the SS Aleutian from Seattle to Seward.

Vera started life Dec. 21, 1922, on a farm in Garfield County, Oklahoma, the last of Ora A. and Anna Mae Anderson’s seven children. Vera graduated high school at age 16 and attended college at Oklahoma A&M in Stillwater, Oklahoma. She was the first woman in her family to attend college. Her second year in college she met H Prentiss Gazaway.

He attracted her because he was the first man she met who wanted to get off the farm more than she did. They married on Aug. 12, 1942. HP spent the next three years with the 8th Air Force stationed mostly in England. Vera joined the Woman’s Army Corps in May 1944. She received an honorable discharge on Dec. 11, 1945, as a Corporal. Vera and HP had their first son, Hal, in July 1946.

After World War II ended, HP and Vera returned to Oklahoma A&M to live in Vet’s Village — college housing for married servicemen and women. HP worked as a graduate instructor. Both completed their master’s degrees. Vera received her teaching certificate in Oklahoma. After obtaining his master’s degree, HP worked as an associate professor at Oklahoma A&M. HP continued his academic career as associate professor at Colorado State University and Oregon State University. Their second son, John Bruce, was born in Colorado. Vera taught elementary school in Colorado and Oregon.

HP then received a job offer as a marketing economist at the Palmer experimental station. The Gazaways experienced seven happy and eventful years living in Palmer. HP served on the Matanuska Fair Board, the Palmer School Board, Parent-Teachers Association, and Boy Scout Council. Vera received a teaching certificate from the Territory of Alaska in July 1955. Vera held offices in PTA, taught for five years, and gave birth to Rebecca, Deborah and Richard L. Gazaway.

After seven years in Palmer, HP was transferred to Washington, D.C., and worked with the Department of Agriculture. The family lived in College Park, Maryland, near the University of Maryland campus.

In 1962, HP and Vera returned to Alaska. HP had received an offer from Robert Bennet, Director, Bureau of Indian Affairs, to be his adviser on rural areas development. Vera had a teaching position.

The years in Juneau proved rewarding. Vera taught until they both retired in 1979. She received Teacher of the Year from the Juneau School District. All five Gazaway children graduated from high school in Juneau. When HP and Vera closed on the sale of their Juneau home, they could not locate the house keys. They had never locked the doors to their home or garage during the years they lived in Juneau.

In 1979, the Gazaways moved to the Inlet View neighborhood in Anchorage. Vera soon returned to work for the Older Persons Action Group as Executive Director. She served with the Commission on Aging board and became editor of the Senior Voice. Vera belonged to the Teacher’s Retirement Association and American Legion Post 21. In 1995, Vera retired a second time. She remained an advocate on aging and stayed politically active on many other issues. In 2000, she received a lifetime achievement award from the Alaska Democratic Party.

In 1999, Vera courageously began her last and most frightening challenge. After tests at a Seattle Clinic, Vera received a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease. As this new phase of her life began, Vera began a daily journal which she continued writing in for many years. For the 14-year duration of her illness, the staff at the Pioneer Homes in Anchorage and Palmer provided excellent care.

Vera Gazaway is survived by daughters Rebecca (David) Liles, Deborah (Horace “Bo”) Johnson; sons Hal P. (Barbara) Gazaway, John Bruce (Christina Kowalezewski) Gazaway, and Richard L. Gazaway; eleven grand children: Angela, Jennifer, Andrera, Sara, Heather, Niall, Farideh, Ramin, Ammon, Lavada, and Rene; and fifteen great grandchildren.

A memorial service for Vera is from 2 to 4 p.m., Nov. 22 in the Anchorage Unitarian Universalist Church, 2824 E. 18th Ave.