* Gladys Wood; Matriarch of Jewelry Store Family

Gladys Elizabeth Wood, matriarch of the family that operated Wood Jewelers on Santa Paula’s Main Street for 58 years, died Tuesday. She was 93.

“She was a very special little lady, and pretty as a picture,” said her daughter, Doris Wood Murphy.

Born Dec. 12, 1904, in Kansas City, Mo., she married James H. Wood in 1921. The couple moved to Santa Paula in 1932 and established Wood Jewelers.

After her husband’s death in 1952, Wood--along with her daughter, Doris, and son-in-law Frank M. Murphy--continued to run the store until closing it when the Murphys retired in 1990.

It was her mother’s passion for painting and charcoal drawings that Doris Murphy remembers most, artwork that once lined the walls of the jewelry store and was sold to countless homeowners across Ventura County during the nearly six decades the store was open.

She was an active member of the Santa Paula Society of the Arts, and after her retirement continued her art studies with several notable teachers.

“She loved the art society, and never missed a meeting,” her daughter said.

In addition to her husband, Wood was preceded in death by brothers Dr. Grant Ghormley and Dr. Robert Ghormley, and her son-in-law and business partner, Frank Murphy.

She is survived by her daughter; a brother, Dr. William C. Ghormley of Corpus Christi, Texas; a sister, Helen Blakely of Wichita Falls, Texas; two grandchildren, four great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews.

Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday at Santa Paula Cemetery. Pastor Chuck Laird of the First Presbyterian Church of Santa Paula, where Wood was an active member, will officiate.

Services are under the direction of Robert A. Stetler Funeral Home of Santa Paula. Donations in her memory can be made to the First Presbyterian Church or a charity.