We are saddened to report that Gleda M. Estes, the wife of Vern Estes, has passed away at the age of 92. Vern and Gleda had been married 72 years.
Gleda, along with her husband Vern, founded the Estes Model Rocket Company back in 1958. She helped Vern with the book keeping and even sewed together some of the original Estes catalogs.
Gleda was a big proponent of using model rocketry for STEM, long before STEM was even thought of. She especially wanted to see girls participate in these activities and developed a scholarship program just for them, called appropriately, “The Gleda M. Estes Scholarship.”
Estes has a memorial web page set up for Gelda at https://estesrockets.com/pages/gleda. You can read her full obituary at https://www.holtfamilyfuneralhome.com/obituary/Gleda-Estes.
Rocketry Research Journal 