Gloria Jean Sumter

Gloria Jean Thomas was born in Meridian, Mississippi, to Geneva and Eugene Thomas Sr., the eldest of five children. In 1957, her family moved to Englewood, New Jersey. After the loss of her father in 1962, Gloria, then just 12, helped raise her younger siblings while her mother worked long hours as a nurse’s aide. Her siblings remember her as both a second mother and someone who loved to laugh.

The family later settled in Paterson, NJ, where Gloria graduated from Eastside High School and began working as a bank teller. Around age 19, she met and later married Henry James Sumter, a diesel mechanic and race car enthusiast who shared her birthday. Gloria became stepmother to his daughter Shelia, and they later welcomed their daughter, Stacie. They made their home on Carbon Street—a property Gloria maintained throughout her life.

Ambitious and determined, Gloria rose to become a vice president at the bank. She valued education deeply, encouraging young people in her family to love learning, especially her daughter Stacie. When the Savings & Loan crisis of the 1980s closed the bank, Gloria pivoted into technology, becoming a LAN administrator. Ever curious, she was one of the first in her neighborhood to own a personal computer and remained a tech enthusiast for life.

Gloria was also a talented seamstress, a lover of classic films and Barbra Streisand. Gloria was a woman of faith who attended churches in Paterson including Gilmore Memorial and Canaan Baptist. Her mother was her closest confidante until her passing in 2006.

After Henry’s death in 2022, Gloria moved to All American Assisted Living in Hillsborough, NJ.  In March 2025, Gloria suffered a stroke and passed peacefully weeks later, surrounded by her daughters.  

She is preceded in death by her husband Henry and brother Eugene. She is survived by her daughter Stacie Hoffmeister (Scarsdale, NY), stepdaughter Shelia Sumter (Franklin Park, NJ), grandchildren Myles, Ava, and Roman, siblings Ellen Thomas Barrett (Willis Barrett), Brenda White, and Edna Thomas (Bethlehem, PA), and her beloved aunt Suzette Scott (Memphis, TN). She leaves behind a large and loving extended family of nieces, nephews, and great-nieces and nephews.

Gloria’s life was marked by quiet strength, resilience, and love. She gave generously, laughed often, and will be deeply missed.

*****Memorial donations may be made in her name to the Alzheimer’s Association.

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