Gladys Adams Niland

AIKEN – Mrs. Gladys Adams Niland, 98, passed away peacefully on Sunday, January 14, 2018, surrounded by her family. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 AM on Thursday, January 18, 2018 at the old St. Mary Help of Christians Catholic Church on Park Avenue with the Reverend Father Gregory Wilson officiating. A reception will follow the service at the Green Boundary Club.  Final Rites and Commendations will be held privately at Calvary Cemetery. Pallbearers will be her three grandsons and her three grandsons-in-law. She was born in Sylacauga, AL to the late James Solomon and Lena Shory Adams. As a young woman, a beloved hobby was dancing and teaching others ballroom and swing dances at the Arthur Murray Studio in Washington, DC. She was a great fan of the jitterbug. She worked for the Atomic Energy Commission as an auditor for the Manhattan Project in Oakridge, TN, eventually moving to Washington, DC, then to Augusta to help open the Savannah River Plant. In 1952, she married Tom Niland. They settled in Aiken and later had four children. Mrs. Niland retired in late 1953 and became a homemaker, creating a loving and family-centered home for her loved ones. Mrs. Niland is survived by her two daughters, Patricia (Jonathan) Collins, Aiken; and Mary Ellen Niland, Nashville, TN; a son, Barry J. (Ann) Niland, Harrisonburg, VA; a daughter-in-law, Sharon Niland, West Columbia; grandchildren, Katie (Bradley) McMillian, Jenny (Christian) Carlisle, Lauren (Clint) Brakebill, Jon Michael Collins, Caroline Niland, Erin Niland, Joe Niland, John Niland; two great-grandchildren, Benton Osteen and Tyler Carlisle; and a brother, Robert Solomon Adams, Asheville, NC. In addition to her parents, Mrs. Niland was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Thomas B. Niland, Jr.; a son, Thomas Michael Niland; and five of her siblings.   In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to St. Mary Help of Christians Catholic School, 118 York St. SE, Aiken, SC 29801. SHELLHOUSE FUNERAL HOME, INC., 924 HAYNE AVE., AIKEN, SC 29801 (803)642-3456 To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Gladys Adams Niland, please visit our flower store.