There was an excitement in the air on a Tuesday afternoon, as people gathered in the reception area in the building on East Chapman Road in Lutz.
People had trekked from such places at Georgia and Texas, Wesley Chapel and South Tampa, Carrollwood and Lutz, to be there.
(B.C. Manion/Staff Photo)
They wanted to hear Gladys Kuhn — Gobby, to those who know her — talk about her first book.
It wasn’t a typical setting for a book signing, as this one was at Horizon Bay, a retirement home at 414 Chapman Road East.
And the author making her literary debut was 94 years old.
She didn’t read dramatic passages from her book, which is simply called “Gobby.”
Instead, she shared recollections from a past that is chock full of fun and adventure.
At the front of her 105-page book, Gobby offers this disclaimer: “To whoever reads this book: All the facts, dates, times and details may not be completely accurate. I am getting a little forgetful at 94.”
The book, which is dedicated to her children, tells the story of a woman who remembers when horses delivered the family’s milk, a card in the window let the ice man know how much ice to leave and movies cost a nickel each.
She recalls a time long before television, cellphones and computers.
Gobby grew up in Chicago during the Depression.
“Sometimes the food on the table was pretty skimpy,” she writes. “Mom would make Brown Flour Soup, where she would brown the flour and butter in a fry pan, then slowly add water and onions. I hated it because it had onions in them, and I didn’t like them as a child.”
But she adds, “We always had homemade bread with it to fill the tummy and, sometimes, Mom would put a little sugar and canned milk on the bread if you didn’t like the soup.”
The book recounts her family’s life, as she was growing up — the jobs her father held, the homes they lived in and how they had fun.
She recalls getting a job in an embroidery factory after high school, to help pay for her dancing lessons.
That’s when she met her friend, Ruby Ryan, and the two of them joined a show that was heading to New York.
“We played all of the big theaters,” Gobby’s book recounts. “We interviewed with the Rockettes and got hired, but the war started and my brother was called to service, so my Mother made me come home.”
The book also follows Gobby’s marriage to Bob Kuhn and the family they had together.
It tells tales of her life as a Girl Scout leader and the adventures she shared with her scouts.
And, she recounts the family’s life on the lake in Odessa, and the good times she had while sailing.
Throughout the book, her love of life is evident. In fact, she concludes many portions in her memoir with this simple, declarative sentence: “Life is good.”
During her book chat, Gobby’s eyes lit up as she recalled the happy times that she’s had.
But she also told those gathered that she’s had her dark times, and for a period of time she had wanted to die.
But that was before she met Raymond Paradis, who also lives at Horizon Bay, she says, and when she mentions his name, she becomes joyful again.
Those gathered to celebrate Gobby’s book release were delighted to be there.
“I think it’s pretty remarkable. My mother has always done remarkable things,” said her daughter, Lynda Rix, who lives in Lutz.
Her daughter, Kathi Traywick, of Ellijay, Georgia, helped Gobby organize her book. So did Melissa Horvath, now a graduate student, who was volunteering at Horizon Bay.
Susan Cuellar, of Carrollwood, helped her mom to get started on the book.
“A lot of times, as people age, we lose some of our hobbies,” Cuellar said. “I was looking for a new thing to kind of keep mom busy. Something for her to do. I had an old computer. She was having a hard time writing. I thought she could type.
“And, it turned into a book,” Cuellar said.
Published June 24, 2015