Gale Eileen Warner Gooden, 84, of Bluemont, Virginia, passed away peacefully at her home in Pine Grove on Wednesday, January 28, 2026.

Gale was born on September 30, 1941, in Rhode Island, the eldest child of the late Leonard and Mildred Warner.  She grew up in East Greenwich, Rhode Island, where she was active in 4-H, winning several pie-baking contests.  When her family moved to Ashburn, Virginia, she stayed behind for a year so she could graduate from East Greenwich High School. Then she attended Antioch College in Ohio.

She met her husband, Floyd Gooden II, when he was a Navy Seabee. They married on April 1, 1961, and were stationed for three years in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The couple then settled in Northern Virginia to be near Mrs. Gooden’s family.

Mrs. Gooden was a homemaker who also ran the family’s welding business, Gooden and Sutphin Welding, which flourished for decades in Loudoun County and Northern Virginia.

Mr. Gooden, an accomplished welder who learned his trade in the Navy, passed away in September 2025.

Gale was a longtime member of Berryville Baptist Church. She often could be seen in Pine Grove cutting acres of grass on her riding lawn mower or walking her beloved dog, Leo. She also volunteered for the Loudon Therapeutic Riding program.

In her later years, when she was disabled by illness, she found comfort in attending Mountain Baptist Church in Bluemont with a neighbor.

She is survived by daughter, Michelle Gooden, a veterinary technician, of Berryville; brothers David Warner (Lillian) of Elkins Park, PA, and Douglas Warner (Jennifer) of Simpsonville, SC. In addition to her husband, a son, Floyd Gooden III, preceded her in death.