Gladys Arlene Leight Beal passed away peacefully during the evening of April 30, 2020 surrounded by her family at her home in Raleigh, NC. She was the surviving spouse of the Rev. William Clark Beal.
Born on July 2, 1935 in York Township, PA, the daughter of Albert Leight and Mary Emenheiser Leight Smeltzer, Gladys was a graduate of William Penn High School, York PA and York Hospital School of Nursing. She was the oldest of seven children: Marian Hovis of York, PA; Charlotte Sechrist of York, PA; Donald Leight (deceased); John Leight of York, PA; William Leight of Shrewsbury, PA; and Norma Grace Leight (deceased).
Her husband of 58 years, Reverend William Clark Beal, Jr. preceded her in death. Rev. Beal served several churches in the Western Pennsylvania Conference of the United Methodist Church and later became the Archivist for the General Commission on Archives and History of the United Methodist Church at Drew University, Madison, NJ.
She faithfully served alongside him in ministry wherever life’s journey took them. Before her husband’s death, she was a member of First United Methodist Church in Somerville, NJ serving as lay delegate to Annual Conference and on the District Committee of Ordained Ministry, as well as the Staff Parish Relations Committee. After his death, she moved to Raleigh to live with her daughter and son-in-law.
In addition to her ministry as pastor’s wife, Gladys was a dedicated registered nurse with a specialty in cardiac care and ICU. She retired from Overlook Hospital in Summit, NJ as a nursing supervisor.
She is survived by her daughters, Joyce Horn (Houston) of Raleigh, NC and JoAnn Pun (Tony) of San Diego, CA; her grandchildren, William Franklin Horn (Saudamini Madra) of San Jose, CA, Mary Horn of Charlotte, NC, Elizabeth Pun of San Diego, and Arlene Pun of Silver Spring, MD.
The family wishes to thank all of those who helped to care for her during her final days on earth.