Gloria Aileen Watts McEwan's Obituary
Gloria Aileen Watts McEwan, age 64 of Ivins, Utah, beloved wife, daughter, sister, aunt, cousin and friend, completed her earthly mission on June 23, 2025 in Provo, Utah after a brief illness. Born on September 23, 1960 to Jerry W. and Gloria Melrose (Mel) Watts in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Gloria lived an adventurous life as a child with her two older brothers Grant and Kim, camping, swinging on a rope across a pond, playing games and anything else that looked like a lot of fun. She was also very close to her extended family and had cousins that were more like siblings to her. Gloria made friends wherever she went and never had fear of meeting someone new. As a girl, she lived in a number of different places across the country including Cedar City and Bullfrog Utah, Bisbee and Holbrook Arizona and various places in Georgia as her mother taught school in those areas. Gloria often spoke fondly of the adventures she and her family had experienced in those areas, especially in Bullfrog where the allure of Lake Powell led to many fun outdoor activities. As she became a teenager, the family returned to Baton Rouge where Gloria subsequently graduated from Istrouma HS and completed LDS seminary in 1978, making many friendships that have endured to this day.
Gloria continued her education at LSU and later transferred to BYU where she earned a Bachelor degree in International Relations with an emphasis in tourism in 1983. She enjoyed her time at BYU where she was roommates with quite a number of her Louisiana friends and met many new friends as well. Gloria spoke often of the fun she had during that time while still exceling academically. She maintained lifelong relationships with many that she knew there.
After college, Gloria briefly taught at a Maryland business school before she moved to the San Diego, California area at the urging of a college friend. There she met her future husband Glen McEwan. Gloria and Glen were initially friends but the relationship blossomed into romance which resulted in their being married and sealed to one another in the Salt Lake City LDS temple on February 20, 1988. As they dated for a number of years, many in the singles ward they attended felt that they should have gotten married much earlier; however, it was just the right amount of time for the couple who this past February celebrated their 37th wedding anniversary.
While living in the San Diego area, Gloria worked for Hewlett-Packard as the Sales Training Coordinator for its Peripherals Division and then later was employed at Geico as a Home and Auto Insurance Specialist. In 1994, Gloria and Glen relocated to Colorado, first living in Littleton and later moving to Castle Rock. There, Gloria made many friends, enjoyed the beauty of the mountains and, together with Glen, traveled extensively all over the state. In particular, she enjoyed soaking in mineral waters and she and Glen visited most of the many hot springs located in Colorado. After 28 years there, they moved to St George Utah and later to nearby Ivins where she enjoyed the kind people, the warm climate and being able to see from her home every day the beautiful Red Mountains that she loved so much.
Throughout her marriage to Glen, Gloria was the ideal partner. She was always such a loving, compassionate, wise and beautiful woman. Glen always found it so easy to love Gloria and felt so blessed to be her husband. Their personalities and strengths really meshed well with one another and they worked well as a team, but they had the added power of great love and respect for one another to really make their marriage work. Gloria and Glen enjoyed much time together, whether it was traveling, working on home projects or just talking. They would often joke that Gloria was the couple’s social coordinator as she would set up fun events with family, host a dinner at home making her famous Jambalaya or Shrimp Etouffee or just simply make plans to go out with friends. Gloria’s cooking was legendary and Glen was happily the primary beneficiary of that talent – He would often take leftovers to work and his workmates would comment on how good his lunch smelled! Gloria and Glen also enjoyed traveling both nationally as well as in their own local area. As Gloria was not fond of flying (although she would if required), they took many road trips which was actually a wonderful way to see the country and enjoy each other’s company. They travelled from coast to coast and saw many sights. Gloria especially enjoyed seeing the ocean, but visiting with family and friends was the best. To her, family was all important and she developed close relationships, not only with those that she grew up with but also with the family that she inherited when she married Glen. She also treasured her friends, many with whom she has maintained close friendships for decades.
Gloria was a very spiritual person and was very attentive to what Heavenly Father wanted her to do. She faithfully served in various capacities within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints including Primary Teacher, Relief Society Secretary, Compassionate Service Leader, Housing Coordinator (singles ward) and Ministering Sister to name a few. She also enjoyed serving people regardless of faith and was always willing to give of her time and talents as well as financially to help a person in need.
Gloria possessed amazing gifts of kindness, empathy and generosity, manifested in selecting the perfect gift for someone, calling someone when they needed it most or knowing the perfect thing to say to someone who was going through a rough time. She had a magnetic way about her that would make people light up around her and could make people laugh and feel good about things. She was also very creative, both in being able to think outside the box when approaching a problem and also in creating and fixing things. She loved crocheting and was known for crocheting baby blankets for each new arrival in the family. She also wasn’t afraid to tackle a tiling or painting project around the house. She was an avid writer and kept a journal for much of her life. She also enjoyed swimming and felt at home in the water. She was always willing to share her amazing talents and had an innate gift for teaching, especially to young people. She had love for life and was as comfortable playing games with the kids as she was having a fun conversation with the adults.
Gloria touched many lives for the better and will be greatly missed, but we have the faith and testimony that we will meet her again and that she and Glen will be with each other again in a glorious reunion.
Gloria is survived by her loving husband Glen of Ivins, Utah, brother Kim (Janet) Watts of Rockville, Maryland and a multitude of brother/sister in-laws, nieces, nephews and cousins, all of whom will miss her very much. Those that have passed on before include her parents Jerry and Gloria Melrose Watts and her brother Grant Watts.
A funeral service is scheduled for July 11, 2025 at 11:00 am at the LDS Chapel located at 1178 S Pondside Dr. Saratoga Springs, Utah. A viewing will be held shortly before at the same location from 10:00 to 10:45. A graveside service will be conducted on July 12, 2025 at 10:00 at the Ivins City Cemetery located at 200 W 400 N Ivins, Utah. For those unable to attend the funeral service in person, a Zoom broadcast has been made available: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89439400748
Meeting ID: 894 3940 0748
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