Glenda Uscola

Glenda Rae Startin Uscola, 84 year-old Paul resident, passed away Wednesday, June 16th after an extended illness.

Glenda was born on August 23, 1936 at Cottage Hospital in Burley, Idaho, to Raeola Sheen Startin and Glenn Startin. After her parents divorced, her mother remarried Ohran Hadden, and Glenda then became a sister to Joan, Udean, and Kathy.

Glenda loved school, attending Paul Elementary and graduating from Heyburn High School in 1953. The friends she made during her school years remained friends throughout her life. Many of those friends would be in the fields with her each summer and fall when she was hoeing beets and beans and picking potatoes to earn money for school activities and cheerleading clothes.

Glenda graduated from high school early, at 16, and married Lyle Darwin Uscola, in July 1953. She moved to Pocatello and supported Lyle as he finished his degree at ISU, working at Garret Freight Lines.

Lyle got his first teaching and coaching job at Valley High School, and they moved to an apartment in Eden. Melody Cay was born in January of that first year. Lyle moved their family to Oakley the next year for a new position. They lived in an apartment above a store, and Glenda spent many hours teaching Melody what things were as they looked out onto the street below. Kyle Darwin was born at this time.

In the summer of 1963, Lyle went to ROTC camp for 6 weeks before beginning a new job at Valley High School, and Glenda and the kids stayed with family. It wasn’t long before she decided she needed a home of her own, and bought a house in Paul. She and her mother and sisters painted and repaired it. When Lyle got back, they moved in, and Stephanie Kim was born while living there.

At this time, Glenda went to work for the Bureau of Reclamation in Burley and soon transferred to Farmer’s Home Administration. She and Lyle divorced in 1976, and she transferred to the Boise Farmer’s Home Administration office as the State Superintendent’s secretary. She retired from Farmer’s Home in 1990 to move back to Paul and help take care of her mother.

She began working at Zipfer Gas in Paul, and made many new friends there. She loved visiting with the “regulars” who came each day. She left Zipfer to work full time at Walmart as a cashier. She eventually retired from Walmart for health reasons, but she always mentioned how much she missed the people she worked with and saw come through her line every day.

Glenda developed a love of reading at an early age and continued to collect books her entire life. Her books filled an entire room’s books shelves, and those that didn’t fit on the shelves were stored in tubs. She shared that love of reading with her children, reading them stories every night before putting them to bed. But the real joy and love of her life was her family. She made it a point to talk to her sisters daily, keeping up on what their families were “up to.” She often told her children, “I just love our family; aren’t they all just great?”

Glenda was preceded in death by her parents, Ohran and Raeola Hadden; brothers-in-law, Bob Tappan, Keith, Elmer, and Frank Uscola; her son, Kyle Uscola; sisters-in-law, Donna and VoLynn Uscola. She will be missed by her daughters, Melody (Corey) Smith and Stephanie Clayton; grandchildren Brook (Brent) Mendez, Starr (Brad) Beck , Kyacey Uscola, John (Stephanie) Smith, William (Sari) Uscola, Lindsey Smith, Greg (Tylynn) Smith, Steven Smith, Rebekka (Lance) McCrae; and her many great-grandchildren.

A graveside service under the direction of Hansen Mortuary will be held at the Paul Cemetery on July 10th at 10:00 A.M. Friends can offer condolences on their website: hansen-mortuary.com.

The family would like to thank the caregivers from Minidoka Home Health. Glenda really enjoyed the women who came to her home and was very grateful for their thoughtful, sensitive, and cheerful assistance.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you give donations to your local community library.