She is survived by her children; David (Christie) Goodman and Ruth Goodman.
Also her brother; Lee Taplin, a niece, nephew and many cousins and friends.
The daughter of a Methodist minister, the family moved every 2-3 years while she was growing up. She graduated high school in Madison, NE and attended Kearney State to become a teacher.
Gretchen's first career was teaching English in Omaha Public Schools. When she became a single mom, she went back to school to become an LPN. She worked night shift at Lutheran Hospital while the kids were young, so that she would be home when they returned from school. When the kids were grown, she started volunteering at Little Priest Tribal College library on the Winnebago Indian Reservation, eventually becoming a full time employee.
Gretchen went back to school to pursue a masters degree in Library Science from the University of Northern Iowa. She was instrumental in obtaining a grant to build a new library at the college and oversaw the completion of the project. She retired as Director of the Library.
Gretchen was passionate about many things - books, the environment, social justice, minority rights -especially of indigenous persons, LGBTQ issues, and peace.
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