Gloria Forcke Stenger, 1923-2024

Gloria Forcke Stenger passed away peacefully on July 2, 2024 at the age of 100. She was born on September 4, 1923, to Iris Cooper and Robert Forcke in Oak Ridge, Roatan, Honduras. She spent her childhood surrounded by crystal-clear water, mountains, and dense green rainforests. She left her island to become a stewardess with TACA Airlines in 1943. In El Salvador, she met her husband, Ray Stenger, an American intelligence officer. They married there in 1947 and moved to Atlanta, where they raised their family of seven children. Gloria loved to feed people and was a great cook. She was an accomplished seamstress and enjoyed re-upholstering furniture.

After Ray retired in 1975, they wintered in Bartow, Florida at Ray’s family home, and summered at their mountain house near Balsam, North Carolina. Gloria loved gardening. In NC, she was a member of a naturalist group led by a wildflower author, taking weekly hikes to discover the plants of the Southern mountains. Gloria treasured her winters in Florida, where citrus groves surrounded her, and she fed and watched migrating birds.

Gloria became a media celebrity in her nineties. A picture was taken of Gloria standing before her huge pink rhododendrons in NC. It was posted online and went viral. As a result, ABC News interviewed Gloria when she turned 100 and again the next spring. Always humble and charming, Gloria took the accolades, smiled, and said ‘thank you’. Her warmth and kindness showed through each interview as they did throughout her life. It was easy for Gloria to make friends - even while she beat them playing her favorite card game – Hand & Foot. She was always interested and listened intently.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Raymond Stenger, two sons, Lowell and Timothy Stenger, and four siblings, Robert, Charles, Joseph, and Mary Ann Forcke. She is survived by daughters, Donna (Bob) Bohanan, and Rebecca (Mike) Valdez, sons, Ronald, Mark (Joanne), and Lawrence (Claire), 11 grandchildren, and 6 great-grandchildren.

Because Gloria loved to feed people, she asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be sent to the St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church Food Pantry, 1305 E. Mann Rd, Bartow, FL 33830. Visitation will be on Monday, July 15 from 4:00 pm-6:00 pm at Whidden-McLean Funeral Home in Bartow. Funeral service will be held 8:00 am, Tuesday, July 16 at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church. Interment will be held at Lakeland Memorial Gardens in Lakeland, FL. Condolences may be sent to the family at http://www.whiddenmcleanfuneralhome.com