Sending birthday happiness

Eight years ago, on June 11, Gladys Walthers of Austintown turned 88 years old. Her three granddaughters sent her 88 carnations. Pictures of Gladys sitting with vases of flowers all around her show her pleasure with the surprise.
The flowers were such a hit that the three sisters, Lori Bryant of Columbus, Janet Howley of Boston and Linda Bryant of Akron decided to continue the tradition the following year.
Grandma was surprised on her 89th birthday with 89 helium balloons.
For Gladys' 90th birthday the girls went a little over the edge -- at least according to their mother, Nancy Bryant, and aunt, JoAnn Duffett. Gladys thought her present was adorable.
The granddaughters, all living out of town, informed the family when their "present" would arrive. At the designated hour, a pizza delivery man arrived and presented Gladys with a pizza box filled with 90 Oreo cookies.
"That's Mom's favorite cookie," JoAnn explains.
Nancy was suspicious. "This is no pizza guy," she remembers telling her sister.
Indeed he was not.
After giving Gladys her cookies, this "delicious-looking" (JoAnn's words) pizza guy delivered another present -- a ripped six pack.
Yes, Gladys' 90th birthday was celebrated with a male stripper. Her daughters still blush when they show the pictures. Here's Mom dancing with the "pizza delivery guy." There's Mom sitting on his lap. Before he left, Gladys gave him a big kiss.
Looking at the photos, Gladys turns to me and says, "Isn't he cute?"
Continuing the tradition
At 91, Lori, Janet and Linda sent their grandmother 91 chocolate kisses. For her 92nd birthday, the girls had a sign placed in the front yard. At 93, the sunroom of the Duffett's home where Gladys lives was filled with 93 roses.
For her 94th birthday, the granddaughters sent 94 letters to Gladys friends to encourage them to send her a birthday card. She received 124.
On Gladys' 95th birthday, the girls compiled a collection of 95 pictures from their grandmother's life and put them on a DVD set to music.
Watching this eight-minute video, I was struck by the beauty and peaceful contentedness in which this sweet, endearing woman has lived her life.
The beginning of the video shows Gladys as a young girl in a dress with a large ribbon in her hair, the day of her piano recital. Gladys with her sister in their tap dancing costumes.
To the tune of "Let Me Call You Sweetheart," pictures reveal the love of Gladys' life, her husband, Peter Walthers, who died in 1975, and Gladys binding books of Braille for the blind, a volunteer activity she performed for 30 years.
Frank Sinatra's "Young At Heart" serenades Gladys, with her ever-present smile, swimming in the pool, an exercise she continues to do four times a week. ... Gladys smiling on a trip to the Grand Canyon and Germany with her family. ... Gladys at her granddaughters' weddings.
The tribute concludes with a message from the girls, thanking their grandmother for being a wonderful role model and friend.
"She gives lots of love and she gets lots of love back," Nancy says of her mother.
"She's still teaching us," JoAnn, struck by her mother's wisdom.
"She is a beautiful woman," JoAnn's husband, Cecil, said, sharing his love for his mother-in-law.
While last year's present from the granddaughters was a moving tribute to a life well spent (except for that one moment of corruption at 90, instigated by the girls), Gladys' daughters are a little nervous about what Lori, Janet and Linda will do this year.
"Maybe they'll send a whole bunch of strippers," I suggest jokingly as Nancy and JoAnn gasp.
Gladys responds, "That would be good!"
But the daughters have nothing to worry about.
Rumor has it, Gladys will be seeing pink on her front lawn today as a flock of flamingos lands to celebrate her birthday -- 96 of them, to be exact.
Happy Birthday, Gladys!
gwhite@vindy.com