These stories can also be heard on Sunday mornings around 10 am on WILD 102’s “Look Back in Time” program. Each week’s radio story will be posted here on our website.
Weekly radio stories are researched, compiled, and read by Sheila Winstead, RCHS Board Member.
September 1, 2024
Gladys Paulson died in 2010 at the age of 98. Today’s story will tell about her with details taken
from her obituary and an article written by Denice DeFrates for the Roseau Times-Region in the
January 27, 2001 issue.
Gladys Paulson was born in Nereson Township of Roseau County, January 26, 1912. Her parents
were Sophia and Gustav Gregerson. She was the youngest family member after Gilbert, Mabel,
Clara, and Olga.
Gladys attended Elementary School district 35 and graduated from Badger School in 1930.
During her high school days, she stayed with her sister Mabel at the telephone office. She helped
at the switchboard after school hours and during the summer she would work during Mabel's
vacation time.
Gladys attended the East Grand Forks Teacher Training Department in 1931, and later attended
Bemidji State College where she received her Bachelor of Science degree in Education in 1959.
Gladys Gregerson married Gilman Paulson on June 26, 1943, in Bremerton, Washington. They
settled in Badger on a farm where she fondly recalls spending her summers gardening and
growing many beautiful flowers.
Gladys taught elementary school for forty-six years. The first sixteen years in a one-room
schoolhouse at Sunshine. A total of ten years were spent teaching in Strathcona, Greenbush, and
Badger. After twenty years in Thief River Falls, Gladys retired in 1977. She later served as a
member of the Retired Educators of Roseau County.
A fan of local history, Gladys spent several weeks creating forty or more posters depicting
classes of Badger High School from 1916-1991. These posters were then displayed at the Badger
School Library in 1991. That same year, Gladys volunteered her time on the "Home Town Fun
Program" committee for the 1930s era during the All-School Reunion. From 1992-1993 Gladys
worked with the Roseau County Heritage Committee. She wrote stories about her family, friends,
and church. Gladys was also a member of the Roseau County Historical Society, Northern
Neighbors Club, and The Sons of Norway.
As a young girl, she played the piano by ear, practicing a piece over and over until she got it
right. Gladys wanted to take lessons, but money was scarce, so each morning she started a fire in
the woodstove at the schoolhouse for ten cents a day. “Lessons were 50 cents, so that was how I
earned money,” Gladys said. “I went to Alma Lind for my first music lessons. She was one of
my best teachers.” To get to the Lind house, Gladys took the bus, at that time pulled by horses.
She also took lessons from Elizabeth Walsh, making the six-mile round trip to her home on foot.
Church has always been an important part of Gladys' life and she was an active member of Our
Redeemer's Lutheran Church in Badger. Gladys' first experience playing piano in church was
during her first year in high school when she played for the Junior Choir at our Savior's Church,
now our Redeemer's Lutheran Church, in Badger. She also accompanied music groups at the
Badger School during her four years of high school. She began playing on a pump organ for
services at the church in Nannestad on January 9, 1927, her Confirmation Day. It was Pastor
Bernard Guldseth who asked Gladys to play on that Sunday so long ago. It was Guldseth’s last
service at Nannestad. She went on to spend 30 years playing for regular church services at
Nannestad until it consolidated with Faith Lutheran Church in 1958 south of Badger. Twenty
years after the consolidation, fire destroyed the first Faith Church, but Gladys remembered
continuing services in the basement of the Marvin Didrikson home. They used Tryphena Rhen’s
organ until the new church was constructed. She was teaching in Thief River Falls from 1957-
1977, but she returned home Wednesday evenings for choir practice and to play for Sunday
services. On Sunday, April 5, 1964, Darrell Borgen came to the telephone office while she was
visiting her sister Mabel. He said, “Will you come and be our organist at Our Redeemer’s?” She
consented to try it. After that, she played organ at both Our Redeemer's and Faith Lutheran
Church for 50 years, a total of 80 years. One special committee that Gladys served on was the
Organ Committee at Our Redeemer's. During this time a new Rodgers Organ was purchased and
installed at the church. This was very meaningful to Gladys.
Some of Gladys' hobbies included making scrapbooks from pictures and clippings of her life and
community over these many decades, photography, and organizing picture albums. She enjoyed
traveling. The tours she has taken include Nashville, TN, Branson, MO, the Black Hills, SD, the
state of Washington, and a very special trip to Norway to meet family there. She has written
about these travels for the newspapers and relatives.
After retirement, Gladys helped care for family members, often taking her husband and sister
Mabel to and from Grand Forks for cancer treatments. Gilman's death on September 26, 1984
prompted Gladys to live with Mabel. Mabel passed away in 1988. Gladys lived at Northland
Homes in Badger until 1995. On November 27, 1995, she moved into the Summerfield
Apartments in Badger where she resided until her death.
Thank you to 
for letting us share our county’s history with your listeners by donating air time, studio time, and production staff every week.