Wilma Pollock's Obituary
Gene Pollock of Hartville, MO, died peacefully on March 17, 2010. She was born on December 16, 1927 in Ft. Towson, Oklahoma, to Carl and Ida Mae Holmes. She was preceded in death by her father, mother; brother, John Carl Holmes; and her first husband, W.C. Bruce. She is survived by her husband, Bob Pollock of Hartville; two children, Douglas C. Bruce and Kathryn Shark, both of St. Louis; a sister, Joyce Miles of Hot Springs, Arkansas; a brother, Jerry Holmes of Norman, Oklahoma; and two grandchildren, Kim Dorlac and John Bruce; aunt, great-aunt and friend to many. Gene grew up and attended school in Wewoka, Oklahoma, graduating from Wewoka High School in 1945. After graduating high school she attended a business college, married W.C. Bruce and became a homemaker and mother and raised a family. After her children, Doug and Kathy, were in elementary school, she began her journey in higher education, earning a Doctorate of Pharmacy from Oklahoma University and a Master of Education from Drury University. She moved to the St. Louis area in 1964 where she worked as a pharmacist for several years, then, after earning her Education Degree, taught chemistry at Hazelwood East High School until she retired in 1992. For several years after retirement, she and her husband, Bob Pollock, divided their time between St. Louis and their home in Hartville. But, even in retirement, Gene kept her knowledge and experience current by working part-time as a pharmacist. For the past several years, she spent all of her time in her beloved Ozarks. Gene had a curious mind that drove her to continue learning all of her life. She was a kind and compassionate person who loved her family and her animals. She and her husband, Bob, raised cattle and horses for many years. She always cared for the abandoned dogs people would drop off near their home. She took the dogs in and gave them a safe and comfortable home with plenty to eat, and lots of love. When Gene was a young girl growing up in Oklahoma, she would organize the neighborhood kids, and produce a play that she had written, and for which she made all the costumes, and applied the actor’s make-up. She was also an accomplished clarinetist in the high school band, and would have driven her family crazy with all her practicing at home if she had not been so good. She could play the “Clarinet Polka” as well as any of the big-band musicians of the 1940’s big-band era. Gene loved the arts, she loved science, she loved people, and she loved life. A memorial service will be held in the Methodist Church in Mansfield, MO, at 12:00 noon on Saturday, March 27. Return to top
What’s your fondest memory of Wilma?
What’s a lesson you learned from Wilma?
Share a story where Wilma's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Wilma you’ll never forget.
How did Wilma make you smile?