Obituary of Sally Jean Glaude
Sally Childs Walker-Glaude’
Sally graduated from Oroville High School (OHS) in 1955 and was a member of the California Scholastic Federation (CSF) as a junior and senior. She was active in the Girls Athletic Association (GAA) for three years and a member of the Pep Club, Mixed Chorus, Choir and Lyre Club. After attending Yuba College for three semesters, Sally married a member of the US Army in 1956 and moved to Colorado Springs. Soon after their move, her husband was deployed to Germany and she and her two children moved to South Carolina where her husband had relatives and remained there until 1958. As hospitals there were segregated, and Sally did not want to give birth to her child in a segregated hospital, she and her children boarded the train for Oroville and her third child was born at Butte County Hospital three days after their arrival. Later that fall, Sally and her three children flew to Germany and in November of 1959, her fourth child was born.
Two years later, difficulties arose for her husband and they lost their government housing, but could not leave Germany until three months after her fifth child was born. In November 1961, Sally and her five children boarded a military transport ship and made the 12-day journey across the Atlantic, docking in New York without a penny to her name. She went to the Red Cross and was issued a plane ticket for San Francisco, then transferring to a Greyhound Bus to Oroville. Her sister provided housing for Sally and her children. She immediately started looking for work and when the lady in the concession stand at the Little League Park resigned, Sheriff Larry Gillick offered her the job that she immediately accepted earning $100 per month. After three months, Sheriff Gillick informed her that he was turning maintenance of the ballpark over to some of his staff and was planning on hiring some female deputies. He suggested that she take the test, which she did, and successfully passed. Sally then enrolled at the Oroville Police Academy, but had no transportation, not even knowing how to drive. One morning she started her walk and sitting in front of her residence was a Yellow Cab taxi. She was asked to get in the cab by Barney Gabriel, owner of the cab. He had a car there five days a week, at no charge, for the next six weeks until she finished school. The year 1962 saw Sally graduate first in her class at the academy, elected president of her class and asked to give the commencement address. She was then sworn in as the first ever AfricanAmerican Law Enforcement Officer in Butte County and the first ever female African-American Officer north of Sacramento to the Oregon border.
Sally’s distinguished career as a Deputy Sheriff spanned 30 years as a jailer, dispatcher and Superior Court bailiff, and other assigned duties, retiring on June 5, 1992. Following retirement, she worked part-time for six more years doing extra bailiff work. In 1970, Sally was elected by her colleagues as Butte County Peace Officer of the Year, receiving the historic award at a Chico Exchange Club meeting. Sally made the comment, “Nothing short of wild horses could drag me away from this job, I find it just as thrilling now as I did my first day on the job.” At the ceremony, Investigation Captain Leroy Wood said, “She’s the Greatest.”
All these years, and to this day, Sally has also found time to give of herself to Oroville. As a member of the Seventh Day Adventist Church, she and other members feed area homeless families once per month as well as prepare food to deliver to other homeless throughout the area. She also is associated with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Men’s Community Recovery Program, assisting men with moving forward with their lives. OUHSD Hall of Fame member Carol Johnson writes in her letter of support, “To Summarize Sally’s life and achievements would be to use an Anonymous quote- “TO LIVE IS TO ADAPT”. This simple quote could have been Sally’s mantra as she has lived her life successfully no matter what challenges she has encountered.” Butte County District Attorney and OUHSD Hall of Famer Mike Ramsey, states in his letter of support for Sally, “She personifies the “Oroville way” of grit and determination in overcoming any obstacles to better herself, her family and her community.”