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She believed deeply in the importance of reading and in the promise held by every child.

Mary Jo Gwaltney, born Mary Jo Bottoms, passed away on September 3, 2026, in Pagosa Springs, Colorado. She was born on October 18, 1944, in Arkansas, and lived a life marked by kindness, devotion to children, and a deep love for her family.

Education opened the path to the work she would so faithfully carry out for decades. Mary Jo was awarded a scholarship to attend Southwestern College in Winfield, Kansas, for her first two years of college. She then transferred to Wichita State University, where she earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in elementary education. After completing her master’s degree, she continued her studies and became certified as an elementary librarian, reflecting the lifelong learning that remained such an important part of who she was.

Mary Jo devoted 37 years to the Wichita Public Schools. For the first 22 years of her career, she taught first, second, and third grades, helping young students build the foundation for their futures. During her remaining 15 years in the district, she served as an elementary school librarian. She believed deeply in the importance of reading and in the promise held by every child. Passionate about helping children from all backgrounds achieve success in school, she worked with both heart and purpose. In one of the schools where she served many high-need children, she developed a grant that was funded, allowing each child to receive a book to learn to read at school and then take home and keep. She believed that this gift of reading would benefit not only the child, but also younger siblings and other family members, especially in non-English-speaking homes.

Her dedication did not go unnoticed. While serving as librarian in one of her assigned schools, Mary Jo was nominated by parents and staff and received the Good Apple Award from the Wichita Public Schools Board of Education, an honor presented bi-annually to employees who provide exemplary service to children and the district. Even with that meaningful recognition, her proudest accomplishment was always her family.

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The love she gave her family was steady, joyful, and wholehearted, and her presence will remain with them in the memories they share.

Mary Jo had a kind heart and a remarkable ability to connect with others. In Pagosa Springs, during her daily swims at the recreation center, she made many friends and acquaintances. One of her fellow swimmers called her “Ms. Sunshine,” a name that beautifully captured the spirit she brought into the lives of others. She looked for the positive in every situation and believed it was important to treat everyone with dignity and respect.

She also found joy in creativity and in the natural world. Mary Jo loved sketching, drawing, and painting with acrylics and oils. She had a deep interest in Native American art and over the years built a treasured collection that included storyteller dolls, baskets, pottery, carved figurines, and Navajo rugs. She was also an avid birdwatcher and an annual member of the South Padre Island Bird Center, where she spent many winter days enjoying the birds at the center and along the Laguna Madre shoreline.

Among the memories her family will hold close is the love she poured into simple moments together. Mary Jo loved her son and granddaughters with all her heart. On family car trips, her favorite game was “I’m thinking of an animal,” with each person taking turns asking questions until someone guessed correctly and began the next round. Those happy sessions sometimes lasted for hours and became part of the family’s cherished story.

Mary Jo is survived by her beloved husband, Larry Gwaltney, and by her son, Ryan Gwaltney and wife, Holli, and their daughters, Danielle Elise and Penelope Jo, who were deeply loved by their grandmother. The love she gave her family was steady, joyful, and wholehearted, and her presence will remain with them in the memories they share and the values she lived each day.

She was preceded in death by her mother, Mary Geneva and her father, Millard Bottoms of Derby, Kansas.

Mary Jo will be remembered as an educator, a reader, an artist, a birdwatcher, a collector, a swimmer, and above all a loving wife, mother, and grandmother. Her life was one of service, warmth, curiosity, and grace, and she leaves behind a legacy of encouragement, compassion, and light.