Artisan returns to making stained glass after stroke

Creating exceptional stained-glass artwork requires patience and the ability to master a tedious and exacting process. Some even may take lessons to acquire the necessary skills involved.

But for Wilma Stratton, who produces and sells stained-glass pieces from her Cape Girardeau home, the process comes natural.

"I never had a lesson," said Stratton, 78. "I'm self-taught."

In 2012, however, it seemed as though Stratton wouldn't be able to enjoy her work again. That was the year her husband Earl died, and it was the year Wilma Stratton suffered a stroke.

She had been having trouble standing, and one of her sons noticed she couldn't remember how to use a straw while drinking a milkshake.

Wilma Stratton poses with some of her stained-glass artwork Tuesday in her home studio. (Fred Lynch)

"He insisted I go to the emergency room," she said. "They ran some tests that showed I'd had a stroke. I also had 95 percent blockage in two arteries in my neck."

After surgery to repair her arteries, Stratton said she couldn't use her fingers well, and she could lift her left arm a only few inches above a tabletop.

But on Christmas Day, she was able to raise her arm over her head.

"My therapist said it was a Christmas miracle, and it's true," she said. "I think Christmas miracles do happen."

By her count, Stratton has created "thousands" of stained-glass pieces that range from small Christmas tree ornaments to windows in the sanctuaries of eight local churches. The Trinity Lutheran Church in Egypt Mills contains 12 of her stained-glass windows for parishioners to view.

Stained-glass art of an angel and a fisherman made by Wilma Stratton are ready for new owners. (Fred Lynch)

"We took Wilma some photos of what we had in mind and she made the windows from that," said Judy Foeste, who served as chairwoman of Trinity Lutheran's building committee when the windows were installed in 2008. "She's excellent in stained glass, and everybody comments on her work."

The excellent work Stratton produces is something she said came to her later in life. In fact, it pretty much happened on a lark during construction of her home in 1978. Her husband, Earl, told her he would make the front doors of the house if she would put stained-glass windows in them.

"I'd never done anything like that before," she said. "But I found an instruction book on how to cut glass and started from there. The windows for the doors didn't turn out as good as I would've liked. The solder was too globby."

Stratton was referring to the process where a heated iron is used to melt solder wire to hold pieces of glass together. She was probably being too hard on herself about the soldering, because friends reacted positively to the stained-glass windows in the doors.

"They asked me if I would make some stained-glass windows for their kitchens," she said. "I was happy to do it."

It didn't take long for word to spread of Stratton's talents. She started taking more orders for the stained-glass windows and other items she created in the basement of her home. When the basement outlived its usefulness in 1985, her husband built an addition that to this day serves as a workshop and showroom for Stratton's creations.

"Earl didn't mind me spending so much time in there because he said it kept me out of meanness," she said.

As the only local producer of stained-glass pieces, Stratton is often referred to as the "stained-glass lady." She has received orders from as far away as California, and her skill sometimes has led to odd requests, such as stained-glass designs on tombstones or a depiction of a nude woman.

"The nude piece was tasteful," Stratton said. "Otherwise, I wouldn't have done it."

With continued physical therapy, Stratton has been able to return to her workshop almost every day. Her fingers have returned to their previously nimble form, and she is working to fill an order of eight stained-glass windows for a buyer in Kentucky.

"I love it when I get orders," she said. "I'm always looking forward to the next one."

When asked how long she plans to continue in the world of stained glass, Stratton had a ready answer.

"As long as I can keep cutting glass."

To make an appointment with Wilma Stratton, call her at 335-6017 or email her at wilma13@showme.net.

klewis@semissourian.com

388-3635

Pertinent address:

319 Pueblo Lane, Cape Girardeau, MO