Lisa Gascoyne has a favorite scripture from the Book of Mormon which says, “When you are in
the service of your fellow beings, you are only in the service of your God” (Mosiah 2:17). It’s
not just a scripture that she likes; it’s how she lives her life. There is another passage she didn’t
mention, but which seems to follow, “Thou shalt not idle away thy time.”
She is almost always doing two things at once, often for others, and one of them is usually
needlework.
Gascoyne is an active member of the Roanoke Valley Chapter National Society Daughters of the
American Revolution which meets in Vinton. (She has served as regent and vice regent.) During
DAR meetings, she is usually busy with some type of needlework project as the program is
presented. She comes laden with a cart or bag of supplies to each meeting. (And with a lovely
voice to lead the national anthem and a “Happy Birthday” song, when needed.)
She earned a degree from Mansfield State University in Pennsylvania in Home Economics,
majoring in Clothing and Textiles, and has put that degree to work in the service of others. She
favors crocheting afghans and, currently, Swedish weaving.
Her courses in college included not just basic sewing, but also homemaking for the
handicapped— organizing the home, modifying clothing to accommodate loss of limbs, how to
move, how to get up, how to get into a car— skills which she has taught others to employ
throughout her life.
When she first moved to the Roanoke area, Gascoyne worked in adult day care. She later served
as activities coordinator at the Virginia Veterans Care Center, leading group activities in the
nursing home/rehab unit, helping to improve the residents’ quality of life through an exercise
program where they could exercise their entire bodies while remaining seated. She retired from
Lewis-Gale Physicians in 2023, after working in customer service, mainly explaining how to
navigate the billing process.
Gascoyne became interested in the DAR many years ago through her mother. DAR members are
required to trace their ancestry back to a Patriot who served in the American Revolution. Her
Patriot is Clark Hiscox, a descendant of William Clark Hiscox who came to America from
England and was the first minister of the First Seventh Day Baptist Church in Westerly, R.I. Further research indicates that Gascoyne is related to Patriots on both sides of her mother’s family. Not only is she connected to the military through the American Revolution, her father, Army Sgt. Paul Richard Gascoyne, served in World War II.
The local DAR is well known for its focus on supporting veterans. Several years ago, she and her
fellow DAR members took on an annual project of cutting and tying fringed fleece lap blankets
for veterans based on a prototype designed by her father.
They are also wearing masks made by Lisa during COVID.
Gascoyne almost always uses her talents in needlework in service to God. What she creates, for
the most part, she gives away— and not just gifts, but gifts with purpose.
During the COVID pandemic, she felt compelled to make “2,200 or so” masks in all sizes and
gave them away. Even though the epidemic has passed, she continues to donate leftover masks to
Ronald McDonald House. She has made too many crocheted hand towels in her life to count.
Gascoyne says she sewed on her first button when she was 5 years old; made her first skirt at age
7, and in high school made a sports jacket for her father. The workmanship was so excellent that
an associate didn’t believe she had made it.
Her parents expected their children to contribute financially to their college educations so one
summer, Gascoyne took on the job of making a sports jacket for a customer out of fake fur in a
leopard pattern— not an easy task in matching the patterns.
She made her wedding dress, a fairly simple one so that it could be used for other events. She
made a suit for her husband, so skillfully constructed that it lasted for her son to wear as an adult.
Gascoyne now crochets afghans for patients in the Sarah Cannon Cancer Institute at LewisGale
Medical Center, especially for new cancer patients undergoing infusion treatments.
One of her latest projects involves crocheting “babyghans” (tiny afghans) for infants at the
LewisGale NICU and newborns at her church. The babyghans are about 16 to 18 inches square
and can be tucked around a baby in a car seat or carried around as a “blankie” by a toddler.
Labels are affixed to the packaging saying, “Made with Love from Parkway Word of The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and the RVC NSDAR.” The babyghans are made in
a variety of colors, but each fifth “babyghan” is made in white for “those who don’t go home.”
Gascoyne has become fascinated by a century’s old technique known as Swedish weaving which
is an absolutely beautiful type of embroidery.
She is not the only one in her family devoted to serving others. Her youngest child, Miriam,
designed a lovely family photo quilt for her grandfather when he was diagnosed with dementia to
help him make connections and maintain his memory. She is a massage therapist and lives with
her two children in Utah.
Gascoyne’s first child, daughter Autumn, works at Nature’s Outlet in Salem and teaches Zumba.
She has four children.
Gascoyne’s son, Paul, has a law degree and owns Tax Lab, a with a new office in Moneta—
“Creating Ethical Millionaires Bookkeeping, Tax, Payroll, Advisory.” He was the caregiver for
his grandfather for many years.
Fellow DAR member Sharon Menzies describes Gascoyne as “very kind-hearted, very energetic,
always busy, and truly always giving a helping hand to others.”
