Jo C. Golden

Jo Cleta Rounds Golden was born on April 13, 1928, in Aledo, Oklahoma to Wilson and Ellen Elliot Rounds. She passed away on July 23, 2017 in Oklahoma City at 89 years of age. Jo was joined in the Rounds family by sister Wanda Lee Rounds Potts and brother Dewey Rounds. She graduated from Leedey High School in 1946 and attended secretarial school in Oklahoma City. Jo married her high school sweetheart, Gordon Golden in 1948. They moved to Del City, Oklahoma in 1951, and had three children, son Keith Golden of Oklahoma City, and daughters Mary Thompson of Oklahoma City, and Pam Roberts of Tulsa. Jo was very proud of her three children, four grandchildren, and several great grandchildren and enjoyed watching them grow and accomplish in life. Jo was primarily a homemaker when her children were young and was active in school activities and in both Boy and Girl Scouts. She was an excellent seamstress, sewing beautiful clothing for her children, relatives, and friends. She also occasionally worked as a seamstress at the Whirlwind Cleaners in Del City. As the children grew they all participated in the band programs in the Del City schools. Jo and Gordon frequently chaperoned trips the bands took for football games and band competitions. When the children grew older, Jo became a very successful real estate salesperson and then turned to the insurance industry. As Jo and Gordon approached retirement, they developed a deep love of antiques. They began to buy, refurbish, and sell a wide variety of furniture, pottery, china, and other items. They delved into the origins and history of several types of items, including Fenton glassware. They created a group of antique enthusiasts, called the Golden Oldies, which has met several times each month since the late 1980s to share knowledge, experiences, and particularly important or unusual items found in the members' travels. In early retirement, Jo and Gordon enjoyed traveling to many locations both by car and on ocean cruises for fun and as part of their antique business. They also enjoyed finding and trying new (at least to them) restaurants and returning often to old favorites. In retirement, Jo also returned to her love of sewing. She developed a love and skill for quilting, winning several honors at various Central Oklahoma Quilt Guild shows, including winning a ribbon at a Quilt Guild show only days before her death. She especially loved machine embroidery and combined her quilting and embroidering skills to make many gifts for family and friends over the years. After Gordon passed away in 2000, Jo moved to Town Village Retirement Community in Oklahoma City as one of the charter residents. She developed many new good friends and acquaintances, served on the residents' council, and enjoyed traveling around Oklahoma City and the rest of the state on site seeing or dining trips sponsored by Town Village. She continued her quilting and embroidery work, as well as involvement with antiques, as long as she could.