Isabelle Gilliland

Isabelle June Stockdill Gilliland died January 12, 2015 in Albuquerque. Isabelle was born in Bellflower, CA in 1922 to the late LJ and June Maldonado Stockdill (Venn). She grew up in Albuquerque and Wagon Mound, graduating from Albuquerque High School in 1940. In her teens, she held a number of jobs in the city, the first working for the Giomi Brothers, but seemed to find a home at KGGM radio. During World War II, her clerical job there launched her onto the airwaves, where her strong voice and quick sense of humor made her a success among the daytime audience. Later in the war, she moved to California and found a job at CBS Radio in Hollywood. Still later, she moved to Juneau, AK, to work for the US Treasury Department. Returning to Albuquerque before War's end, she was employed at Sandia Base for several years. It was there, in 1950, that she met Paul Gilliland. They married on St. Patrick's Day, 1951. In 1953, the Gillilands left Albuquerque for Norway, beginning an odyssey of military duty stations that would last seventeen years, and take them from Europe back to California and from end to end of the continental United States. Finally, in 1970, the family returned to Isabelle's beloved hometown and her extended family. Once all of her seven children were in school, Isabelle went back to work for KGGM Television's traffic department, where she worked through the 1970s. After her retirement, Isabelle found time to travel and to indulge her lifelong love for dancing. She was, for many years, a fixture at the Highland Senior Center, where she volunteered in many capacities. Isabelle was preceded in death by her husband, Paul E. Gilliland. She is survived by her brother, John L. Stockdill, of California; her seven children, Mark Gilliland, Terrance Gilliland and his wife, Lois, and Shawn Gilliland and his fiancée Felicia Dooley, all of Albuquerque; Patrick Gilliland, of California; Carmel Chapline and her husband, Michael, Mary Erin Grosso and her husband, Michael, and Mary Celeste Bradley and her husband, Charles, all of San Antonio, Texas; and 16 grandchildren, Heather Gilliland, Leah Gallegos, Bryan and Conor Gilliland, Karen Alba, Andrew and Michael Chapline, Mikaela, Ryan, and Noelle Grosso, Matthew, Adam, Jacob, Jeffrey, Steven and Clayton Bradley, and three great-grandchildren. Visitation will be from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Monday, January 19 at Strong-Thorne Mortuary, with recitation of the Rosary to follow. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Annunciation Church on Tuesday, January 20, at 10:30 a.m., with Rev. Monsignor Voorhees officiating. Interment will follow at Fairview Cemetery at 1:00 p.m. Pallbearers will be Mark, Terrance, Patrick and Shawn Gilliland, Michael Grosso, Charles Bradley, and Michael Chapline. The family requests that donations in lieu of flowers be sent to the Canossian Sisters, 5625 Isleta Blvd SW, Albuquerque, NM, 87105 or to support Alzheimer's research. To view information or leave a condolence, please visit www.danielsfuneral.com
Strong-Thorne Life Events Center
1100 Coal Ave SE
Albuquerque, NM 87106
505-842-8800

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