Gloria (Minor) Colerick, 90, passed away on May 12, 2026, at her home in Scottsdale, Arizona. The daughter of Neva and Harry Minor, she grew up in the Sandhills of Nebraska, along with a horse she named Slipaway. She spent summers on the Minor Ranch, south of Hyannis, and went to school in Alliance. Gloria also attended Brownell Hall in Omaha before entering Alliance High School. There she met her husband, Richard (Dick), to whom she was married for 72 years.
She gave birth to their first child in Tokyo, Japan, where Dick was stationed during his service in the U.S. Army. After returning to Western Nebraska, she had three more children before the family relocated to Lincoln, where they resided for nearly fifty years.
Gloria earned a bachelor’s degree in horticulture from the University of Nebraska and embarked on an entrepreneurial endeavor called The Growhouse – a wholesale greenhouse operation located just east of Lincoln. She later opened four Growhouse retail stands around town where she sold bedding plants seasonally. She was known for the wide variety and high quality of her plants. During the fall season, she grew poinsettias and donated large numbers to nursing homes throughout Lincoln every year.
Gloria was a member of UNL’s Kappa Alpha Theta sorority and was also a lifelong member of P.E.O., a philanthropic educational organization. She was a good Bridge player, enjoyed watching the Backyard Farmer, and delighted in many creative hobbies. She will be remembered for her wonderful sense of humor and her beautiful singing voice. Her lovely gardens, lifelong friendships, and devotion to family are forever etched in the hearts of those who knew her.
Gloria was preceded in death by her parents, Harry and Neva (Dahlstrom) Minor, and her brother, Richard Minor. She is survived by her loving husband, Dick, her children, Kyle Colerick, Kevin Colerick, Brad Colerick (Celeste), Julie Larsen (Randy), and six grandchildren, Rachel Prentiss (Brandon Ell), Cole Larsen, Eva Prentiss, Reed Larsen, Kal Colerick, and Paloma Colerick.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation to the Alzheimer’s Association.