Shirley Gagnon

Shirley M. Gagnon, 87, of Midland, passed away peacefully in Plano, Texas, Monday, Sept. 25, 2017. Shirley Burch was born in Dallas, Wis., Feb. 2, 1930. At 19, she married Jerry Gagnon at First Baptist Church in Bay City. They remained happily married from 1949 until Jerry's death in 2005.

She is survived by her daughter, Sherry (Bill) Letts of Grand Prairie, Texas; her sons, Kevin Gagnon of Traverse City and Kim (Sue) Gagnon of Plano, Texas; her grandson, Sean (Laura) Letts; granddaughters, Shannon (John) Schwartz and Christina Gagnon; and her great-granddaughter, Kaitlyn Letts. Kim, Sue, and Christina were devoted caregivers to Shirley in her last months. Also surviving are her sister-in-law, Kathy Burch of Midland; several nieces, nephews, cousins, friends and neighbors. She was preceded in death by her husband, Jerry; her sister, Delores Rozek; her brother, Erlyn Burch; and her beloved granddaughter, Andrea Michele Gagnon.

Shirley worked at Prestolite in Bay City for many years and retired from her position as administrative assistant at Quantum Composite in Midland. She stayed active working on her beautifully landscaped yard, feeding the birds and playing with her dog Laddie. She also enjoyed genealogy and selling antiques on eBay.

When asked how she wanted to be remembered, Shirley said, "My husband and children were the most important parts of my life. It gave Jerry and I great pleasure to help them anyway we could."

There will be a memorial service including a double inurnment for Jerry and Shirley at the DFW National Cemetery in Grand Prairie, Texas, on Nov. 22, 2017, at 2 p.m. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Shirley's name to Shriners Hospitals for Children, 2900 Rocky Point Dr., Tampa, FL 33607 (shrinershospitalsforchildren.org).