There were few things Gini Grant Olson found more important to a child’s early education than reading. “She believed that it all began with good reading skills, that it was the foundation for learning itself,” said her husband of 40 years, C.John. Mrs. Olson, 72, of St. Charles, a former school librarian, died Wednesday, Feb. 4, in Rosewood Care Center in St. Charles. Born and raised in Chicago, Mrs. Olson was a graduate of Iowa Wesleyan College in Mt. Pleasant. She worked for several years as the secretary to William A.P. Pullman, who was the president of the Chicago Horticultural Society in the 1960s and oversaw the emergence of the Chicago Botanic Gardens in Glencoe. “That was a fascinating time for her, because her job had her attending many high society affairs and rubbing elbows with some of the North Shore’s elite,” her husband said. Later, Mrs. Olson began her 24-year career in education, serving at various times as a librarian at Little Woods School, Lincoln Elementary School and Richmond Elementary School, all in St. Charles, as well as a remedial reading teacher at St. Charles East High School. During the 1980s, she also was instrumental in the support staff’s union negotiations with St. Charles Community Unit School District 303. Mrs. Olson also was an excellent pianist and performed at many area churches, her husband said. Other survivors include five sons, Ronald, John C.; Geno, Chip and Dale; and six grandchildren. Visitation will be held from 3 to 7 p.m. Sunday at Norris Funeral Home, 100 S. 3rd St., St. Charles. Services will be held at 11 a.m. Monday at the funeral home.
