Yvonne Denise Gordon

YVONNE D. GORDON, a.k.a. Lesmotsique, “The Artist of Words,” was born on November 18, 1954and departed this life on December 5, 2022. Yvonne is the eldest daughter of Mabel Laws and was born in Baltimore, Maryland. She graduated from Fort Worthington Elementary before successfully receiving a business degree from Patterson Park Senior High School. Yvonne also received degrees from Baltimore City Community College (an Associate of Arts degree in General Studies), and the University of Baltimore (a Bachelor of Science degree in Corporate Communications). Although Yvonne was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, she has lived in Tucson, Arizona, and in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, located in Northwest Africa. She was married to city employee John and had two children, Tahno and Amanda. Yvonne was multi talented and had a passion for improvement in all aspects of learning. She spoke French fluently and had a love for dance and cooking. In fact, in her earlier adult years, she loved toentertain and was interested in ballroom dancing. Generally known as the artist of words, she was a published author, who researched, wrote, and recited poetry and prose under the pen name “Lesmotsique,” “lay-moh-zeek.” When asked about the origin or meaning of the name, she replied it had been her own creation, using her knowledge and understanding of French. It means, “The Artist of Words. When her children had grown older and they were staying with other relatives, Yvonne took advantage of her time for research and writing. She would ultimately devote a great deal of her time producing works of poetry and prose. Her book, Going With The Flow: a collection of poems on the pendulum of life, was her first self-published work which can be found on Amazon. In addition to poetry, she wrote short stories, feature articles, humor, screen plays, and song lyrics. Yvonne maintained a blog page under her pen name for one year before deciding to devote more time towards novel writing. She is the creator of a framed and laminated greeting card collection for loved ones for all occasions. Taking her words from the page and onto the stage, she has been seen in spoken word performances throughout Maryland. She was also a member of the Black Writers Guild. John had always said that Yvonne could take something small and turn it into something big. She discovered a silver lining in just about everything. Because she was a writer and loved story-telling, she was able to derive something from just about anything. Yvonne would converse with just about anyone in any place or situation. She was a kind, gentle, and loving being. She is preceded in death by her mother Mabel Laws, and her grandparents William and Ophelia Ervin. She leaves to cherish her memory: husband, John; one son, Tahno (Antoinette); one daughter, Amanda; one granddaughter, Shanae; four sisters, Delores, Jacqueline, Constance, and Marva; two brothers, Douglas and Steven; several nieces and nephews, and a host of other relatives and friends.

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Yvonne Denise Gordon

November 18, 1954 - December 5, 2022