Gladys Surman of Schulenburg departed this earthly world on Monday, Aug. 4, 2025, to meet with family and friends who preceded her in death. The good Lord blessed her with 93 years, 3 months and 22 days of life.
Gladys was born in Weimar on April 13, 1932, to Henry and Adela (Michalek) Kloesel. She lived in Sedan, Middle Creek, Houston, Praha, St. John and Schulenburg. She happily resided at the Schulenburg Regency Nursing Center for the last five years; that was after living in the Regency Villas for six years.
She attended elementary school in Sedan’s two-room school house and went to high school in Weimar. Gladys, in her teenage years, had gotten bitten by a cat and had to endure a shot in the stomach for 23 consecutive days which was the regimen to prevent rabies at that time. Traveling from Sedan to the hospital in Schulenburg on a daily basis would have been costly and time-consuming so her parents elected that she, instead, stay at the hospital in Schulenburg (now the Paradigm Nursing Center). To earn her keep, she helped the hospital staff. It was during this stay, that she met her husband, Herbert Surman, while Herbert’s mother was a patient at the hospital. After an 18-month courtship, they married on Sept. 4, 1950.
Gladys and Herbert lived in Praha from the time of their marriage to 1953 when they moved to Houston. They moved back to Praha in 1966 and started a new life for their family of six children. Gladys helped with outside work on the family farm and was a full-time mother until all of her children had gotten on their own. Then she worked at Frank’s Restaurant for 13 years (she helped make those famous pies), at the Schulenburg Regency Nursing Center’s laundry room for 6½ years, and, in her very senior years, at the nursery for Schulenburg United Methodist Church for almost two years. She saw the way of life go from horse-and-buggy days with no phone to present-day e-mailing and mobile phone with texting, and 16 presidents in between.
Gladys loved to shop. She didn’t buy much; she got great pleasure out of just looking. She could easily spend two hours in a Walmart, and leave with no more than a few items. Gladys loved dogs. If she was out somewhere and someone came by with a dog, she wanted to pet it. If someone brought a dog to the nursing home, she was in line to pet it and would love it even more if the dog sat on her lap. Her children recall sitting on the porch of the farmhouse and petting all the dogs they had on the farm. The dogs loved it too. One of Gladys’s biggest loves was sweets. She never met a cinnamon roll that she didn’t like. Her family remembers many late nights when she could be heard opening the freezer door to get a bowl of ice cream.
An even bigger love of Gladys was to spend time with her children, grandchildren (12), great-grandchildren (29) and great great grandchildren (2). She was most comfortable always “doing something” and dedicated herself to the happiness of others, expecting nothing in return. She had a servant’s heart and focused on putting others first. Everyone who met Gladys recalled her as the “sweet lady.” That she was!
Gladys was preceded in death in 1998 by her husband of 48 years, a daughter Beatrice who passed away in infancy in 1962, daughter Diana in 2023, a brother Alvin who passed in infancy in 1934, her parents, and her husband’s siblings and their spouses.
Memories of Gladys will be cherished by daughter Norma and husband Felix Buxkemper of Huntsville; son Patrick Surman and wife Pam of Engle; daughter Barbara and husband Jim Brown of Schulenburg; daughter Gladys and husband AJ Kutac of St. John; son Mike Surman and Colette Surman of Hostyn; the previously referenced numerous grandchildren; sister Dolores DeLaFuente (94) of Hockley; and numerous nieces and nephews, and their spouses.
Funeral services were held on Friday, Aug. 8 at 10 a.m. at the St Rose of Lima Catholic Church in Schulenburg, with Fr. Luke Prihoda as the celebrant. Interment was in the St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery in Praha. Gladys’ eight grandsons were pallbearers – Jason Buxkemper, Ryan Buxkemper, Shane Surman, Jared Surman, Levi Surman, Aaron Kutac, Garrett Kutac and Jake Surman. Her four granddaughters were honorary pallbearers – Rhonda Owens, Jessica Wolff, Amanda Eudy and Caitlin Urban.
Visitation to the public began at 5 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 7, with rosary recited at 7 p.m. at Schwenke-Baumgarten Funeral Home. Gladys’ five children led the rosary.