Alice Faye Spears' Obituary
Alice Faye (Hallford) Spears, age 85, passed away May 29th at the Strafford Care Center, Strafford Missouri after a long battle with Alzheimer’s.
Alice was born February 12, 1940 in Okmugee Oklahoma to Owen and Faye Hallford. Her parents moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma where she attended school and graduated from Webster High School in 1958. While growing up she was a member of the Carbondale Church of Christ, and participated in school theater. She was very involved in the Theta Rhos (a division of the Odd Fellows and Rebekkahs) and served as chapter president.
She received a scholarship to attend Northeastern State University in Tahlequah Oklahoma, where she was a member of the Delta Zeta sorority. During summer breaks, she was a student leader for the Odd Fellows United Nations Pilgrimage For Youth in New York City. She received her Bachelor’s in Education in 1962. It was during her time at Northeastern that she met her husband, David Spears, on a blind date.
She married David on May 5th, 1962. She began her teaching career the following school year. She taught at several schools before taking a leave of absence to have children. About ten years later she began substituting until getting a full time teaching position with Tulsa Public Schools. During this time she worked towards her Master’s Degree in Education, which she received in 1974.
Alice taught a variety of subjects, including art and first grade. Her last classroom experience was at Grimes Elementary. Alice made the decision to become a principal and began working on certification which included the pursuit of a Master’s Degree in Administration. Her first job in the field was as assistant principal at Lee Elementary. She then became principal at Riley Elementary, and after its closure, assumed the same position at Kerr Elementary, where she retired in 1997.
After retirement, Alice and David (along with their son Davy) did some traveling, mostly to Saint Louis to go to Cardinal games, and visits to Springfield Missouri to see their grandchildren Allison and Benjamin. Eventually they bought a lake house at Grand Lake and spent many weekends there.
Not satisfied with sitting still, Alice decided to take up quilting. Never one to do things halfway, she began entering quilt competitions and won several awards, including First Place at the Tulsa State Fair for one of her entries.
Alice was a huge advocate for public education. She took great pride in the fact that she taught many students how to read. She was also known for being a really good cook. She loved the arts, regularly going to plays, musicals, museums, and the symphony. She loved her husband David more than anyone in her life, and was a stern gatekeeper and protector of her mentally disabled son David II. She absolutely adored her two grandchildren and generally honored all requests that they made, in particular early morning chocolate milk at the lake house.
Alice is predeceased by her husband David, her son David II, her parents, and her brothers Jess and Bill. She is survived by her daughter, Elizabeth (Spears) Johnston and son-in-law Andy of Springfield Missouri, her grandchildren Allison (Johnston) Porcelli and her husband Chris of Tulsa, Benjamin Johnston and his fiancée Sarah Smith of Republic Missouri, her brother John Hallford, as well as many nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you make a donation in Alice’s name to the Oklahoma Chapter of Alzheimer’s Association:
https://www.alz.org/oklahoma?form=FUNDHYMMBXU
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