CLETA JEAN FLOWER, 81, storyteller, writer, artist, businesswoman, wife, mother and grandmother, passed away Wednesday, February 16, 2011 at William Newton Memorial Hospital in Winfield, Kansas.

Jean was born August 31, 1929, in Winfield, to Gilbert Gordon and Pauline (Hoyt) Gordon. Her early life included living on a failing sheep ranch in the dustbowl of eastern Colorado and in the goldfields of Cripple Creek and Victor, Colorado. She and her parents became neighbors to gangster Pretty Boy Floyd and some of his associates while those gangsters were in hiding for a time. She and her parents returned to Kansas where Jean grew up on farms near the communities of Dexter and Wilmot. She married Bill Flower of Winfield, June 6, 1947, and graduated from Winfield High School in 1948. For most their life together, they lived and worked in Winfield where they raised their three sons.

Bill eventually entered the service station business and the couple operated a total of seven service stations and a convenience store/deli during their life together, at one point operating at least three different locations at once. Jean took care of the books, cooked for the deli and served customers. The couple also operated a U-Haul dealership for 35 years. They purchased a cabin at Grouse Creek near Ark City and spent many happy years before retiring to their home in Winfield.

Jean loved to tell stories and she often entertained friends and family with oral renditions of her experiences and life in the depression. She loved to write and many of her stories fill a book that she recently finished.

Jean was also an accomplished painter having produced many pieces over the last five decades. Her works include many oil paintings, pen and ink drawings, watercolors, chalks and pottery. She also wrote and illustrated a beautiful children's book for her beloved grandchildren and great grandchildren. In the 60's, she operated an art studio and taught students how to paint.

Jean is survived by:
Her sons: Mike Flower and wife, Scotty of Tulsa, Oklahoma; Kris Flower and wife, Jo; and Paul Flower all of Winfield;
Her grandchildren: Paula Tinsley, Sage, Jedd, Jake and Kayle Flower; and
Her great grandchildren: Brooklyn, Sebastian, Haze, Colt and Logan Flower.
She is also survived by her brother: Joe Gordon and his wife, Florence of Winfield;
Her sister: Rhea Sloan and her husband, Ron of Dexter; and
Her sisters-in-law: Dorothy Flower and Alice Flower of Winfield.

Jean was preceded in death by her parents, Gilbert and Pauline Gordon, and her husband, Bill Flower.

Memorial Services will be held on Tuesday, February 22, 2011 at 2:00 P.M. at Miles Funeral Service. Inurnment will follow at Dexter Cemetery in Dexter, Kansas.

A Memorial has been established in Jean's name for the Cancer Center of Winfield. Contributions may be made through the funeral home.