Gertrude Merintha Amos Ellison was born June 19, 1920 on the Cooley Ranch in the White Mountains in Arizona to Paul Eliphelet Amos Sr. and Merintha Altheria Penrod Amos. She died peacefully on Thursday, April 4, 2019 at the Baptist Village in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Gertrude was preceded in death by her parents and husbands, as well as, brothers George, Melvin, Marvin (infant), and Bill Amos, sister Delta Brewer, and 3 infant granddaughters. She is survived by her son, Jim Gilbert (Emily) of Phoenix AZ, daughter Susie Taylor of Oklahoma City OK, and brother Paul Amos (Lorinda) of Whiteriver AZ. She is also survived by grandchildren Jon Gilbert, Liz Glenn (Bob), Julie Gilbert and Rose Gilbert, all of Phoenix AZ, as well as, 5 great-grandchildren, 12 great-great-grandchildren, many nieces and nephews, and more friends than can be counted. While growing up she lived in Pineyon, McNary, Lakeside, and Whiteriver, all within close proximity to the Cooley Ranch in Arizona. She finished school in Whiteriver and married Fritz Gilbert, and had their son James Gordon (Jim) at a very early age. She and Fritz divorced after about 8 years of marriage. While working for the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Fort Apache Agency in Whiteriver, she met and married Silas (Si) Oliver Davis who was a Fire Control Officer for the BIA. Gertrude and Si lived at the Colville Agency in Washington state during World War II, and she told stories about gas rationing that keep them close to home. She would ship crates of smoked salmon, caught from the Columbia River by the Native Americans, back to Arizona to family and friends. After the war years, they moved back to Whiteriver, and after almost 16 years of marriage, Si passed away suddenly in their home due to a heart attack. In 1958, Gertrude married Eugene (Gene) Earl Ellison who was a born-and-bred Okie, a World War II veteran, and a graduate of Oklahoma State University (then Oklahoma A&M) who worked his entire career in different positions with the BIA. While married to Gene, they lived in Whiteriver AZ, Valentine AZ, Carson City NV, Albuquerque NM, Phoenix AZ, and Anadarko OK. Their daughter Susan (Susie) Jean was born in 1960. Gene passed away at their home in Anadarko in 1995 after a long illness, and Gertrude continued to live in Anadarko until 2008. Much of the community in Anadarko helped to look after her, which allowed her to live by herself until she was 88 years old. She attended St. Peters Lutheran Church in Apache, OK, and drove the "old" people to church. In 2008, she moved to Quail Ridge Assisted Living in Oklahoma City and lived there very happily until 2017 when she fell and broke her right hip. In true Gertrude fashion, she soldiered through the hip replacement surgery and celebrated her 97th birthday while recovering at the Baptist Village. After a month of rehabilitation in their Skilled Nursing Facility, she moved to their Long Term Care. The care and attention she received from all areas of the Baptist Village were exemplary and helped to make her last years be just as fabulous as all of her years before. Her caregivers, including those from Faith Hospice, cannot be commended enough. Gertrude was tough as nails, yet wielded her power with gentleness and kindness. She had the ability to make "wherever she lived", a home. She was content and grateful, and never afraid. She was a lifelong faithful member of the Lutheran Church and taught childrens Sunday School in all of the places she lived for 50 consecutive years. She was an enrolled member of the White Mountain Apache Tribe. She never had any problem finding a job that she enjoyed and didnt retire until she was almost 70. During her life she worked as a telephone switchboard operator, a bookkeeper, a substitute teacher, an elementary school librarian assistant, and an elementary school teaching tutor. She was a wonderful cook, and she sewed, crocheted, gardened, exercised, fished and hunted. She loved to dance, to attend rodeos, and she loved to watch sports, especially Thunder basketball and OU football. She was a woman of great strength and spirit, and she told everyone that she "had a wonderful life." Shortly before her death, her last words to her family and the many caregivers who adored her were "I love you." It was Gertrudes desire to be cremated and have her ashes returned to Arizona. A Celebration Service is planned for Saturday, 4/13/2019, at 2:00 pm at the Baptist Village in the TB Lackey Activity Room, 9700 Mashburn Blvd, Oklahoma City, OK 73162. This service will be followed by a continued celebration for all who wish to attend at the home of her daughter, Susie Taylor. Donations, in lieu of flowers, can be made to Baptist Village at www.baptistvillage.org/Donate. Please choose the Oklahoma City location and General Fund. Memorial Service Baptist Village T.B. Lackey activity room Saturday, April 13, 2019 2:00 PM 9700 Mashburn Blvd. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73162