Francis Alley of Broken Arrow, 77, passed away December 12, 2011 in Tulsa. He was born June 13, 1934 in Big Pond, OK to Jess Scott and Needa Pearl (Barnett) Alley. Max married Goldie Marie (Higgins) June 28, 1952 in Bristow and together they created a beautiful family. A longtime evangelist, his mission in this world was to preach throughout the country. A "jack of all trades," Max had a talent for working with his hands. He enjoyed painting and woodwork. Max once owned an antique store. He and his wife were survivors of the I-40 bridge collapse. Max was preceded by his parents: Jess and Needa Alley; brother Scott Alley; sister Mary Anderson; and son-in-law Eddie Russell. Max is survived by his loving wife Goldie Alley of the home; daughters: Sherry Russell and Gay Jacobs, both of Broken Arrow; son Bucky Alley and his wife Teresa of Owasso; grandchildren: Jason Jacobs, Eddie Russell, Jr. and his wife Tara, Angela Heltzel and her husband Jeff, Nicole Schwegler and her husband Craig, and Andie Russell, all of Broken Arrow, Brooke Brimer and her husband Chris, Erica Mullinax and her husband Mike, Shelby Alley and Kayla Alley, all of Owasso; 10 great-grandchildren; sisters: Martha Cushing and Sue Pryor, both of Stroud, and Marilyn Brown and brother-in-law Terry of Prague. Bequests may be directed to Praise Gathering Fellowship Church, 708 N. Atlanta, Owasso, OK 74055. Visitation: 6-8PM Wednesday, December 14; service: 10AM Thursday, December 15, both at Praise Gathering Fellowship Church; interment: Floral Haven Memorial Gardens.
(Kennedy Kennard)
BROKEN ARROW - Lying in a hospital bed after the Interstate 40 bridge collapse in 2002, the Rev. Max Alley offered a divine explanation for his survival.
"If you look at photos of the accident," he said, "you won't see any skid marks. So who do you think stopped our truck?" Alley and his wife, Goldie Alley, were on their way to a Sunday morning revival when a barge drifted off course and hit the bridge. A 600-foot section collapsed, killing 14 people, including a 3-year-old girl. Alley's pickup fell 60 feet, landing on part of the broken roadway. But the truck stopped just before it would have vaulted into the water. "I'm not saying that God wasn't with the people who died, too," he explained in 2007 on the fifth anniversary of the bridge collapse. "In a way, you might say he was with them more, because he brought them to a better place - a place where I trust he will take me someday." Max Francis Alley died Monday at age 77. Funeral services are scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday at Praise Gathering Fellowship Church in Owasso, where his son, Bucky Alley, is the pastor, under the direction of Kennedy-Kennard Funeral Home. A visitation is planned at the church from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday. Alley became an ordained minister in the Assemblies of God in 1973, just a few years after a friendly invitation to church led to his conversion. "He really wanted to pastor a church," Goldie Alley said Tuesday. "He didn't really want to travel all the time, but he felt called to be an evangelist, so that's what he did." The bridge collapse left him with a broken back, but he fully recovered and turned the tragedy into a testimony. Alley and his wife wrote a book - "A Gathering of Angels at the I-40 Bridge" - and preached hundreds of sermons nationwide about their miraculous survival. They traveled the country in a Dodge Dakota that was the same model year and same silvery color - with the same four-door stretched cab - as the one that crashed off the bridge. It was identical, except for a custom decal printed in bold white letters on the rear window: "Survivors. May 26, 2002. I-40 bridge collapse. Webbers Falls, OK." Goldie Alley still drives it. "Even now," she said, "people will follow me to ask about it. And that's what we always wanted people to do, because it's a chance to tell our story." For years after the crash, the Alleys suffered gruesome flashbacks. They could close their eyes and still hear the screeching brakes, still see helpless drivers careening over the edge. Max Alley seemed especially haunted by the image of a diaper bag floating in the water. But he always gave the story an inspirational twist. "God is not indifferent to our suffering," he would tell audiences. "It's when we are hurting that God draws closer to us." In recent years, Alley tried to steer his sermons away from the accident. But people always asked. "He never really got away from that," his wife said. "But I don't think he ever minded, because he really felt God's presence that day on the bridge."
(The Tulsa World, Michael Overall, World Staff Writer, Dec. 14, 2011)
(Kennedy Kennard)
BROKEN ARROW - Lying in a hospital bed after the Interstate 40 bridge collapse in 2002, the Rev. Max Alley offered a divine explanation for his survival.
"If you look at photos of the accident," he said, "you won't see any skid marks. So who do you think stopped our truck?" Alley and his wife, Goldie Alley, were on their way to a Sunday morning revival when a barge drifted off course and hit the bridge. A 600-foot section collapsed, killing 14 people, including a 3-year-old girl. Alley's pickup fell 60 feet, landing on part of the broken roadway. But the truck stopped just before it would have vaulted into the water. "I'm not saying that God wasn't with the people who died, too," he explained in 2007 on the fifth anniversary of the bridge collapse. "In a way, you might say he was with them more, because he brought them to a better place - a place where I trust he will take me someday." Max Francis Alley died Monday at age 77. Funeral services are scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday at Praise Gathering Fellowship Church in Owasso, where his son, Bucky Alley, is the pastor, under the direction of Kennedy-Kennard Funeral Home. A visitation is planned at the church from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday. Alley became an ordained minister in the Assemblies of God in 1973, just a few years after a friendly invitation to church led to his conversion. "He really wanted to pastor a church," Goldie Alley said Tuesday. "He didn't really want to travel all the time, but he felt called to be an evangelist, so that's what he did." The bridge collapse left him with a broken back, but he fully recovered and turned the tragedy into a testimony. Alley and his wife wrote a book - "A Gathering of Angels at the I-40 Bridge" - and preached hundreds of sermons nationwide about their miraculous survival. They traveled the country in a Dodge Dakota that was the same model year and same silvery color - with the same four-door stretched cab - as the one that crashed off the bridge. It was identical, except for a custom decal printed in bold white letters on the rear window: "Survivors. May 26, 2002. I-40 bridge collapse. Webbers Falls, OK." Goldie Alley still drives it. "Even now," she said, "people will follow me to ask about it. And that's what we always wanted people to do, because it's a chance to tell our story." For years after the crash, the Alleys suffered gruesome flashbacks. They could close their eyes and still hear the screeching brakes, still see helpless drivers careening over the edge. Max Alley seemed especially haunted by the image of a diaper bag floating in the water. But he always gave the story an inspirational twist. "God is not indifferent to our suffering," he would tell audiences. "It's when we are hurting that God draws closer to us." In recent years, Alley tried to steer his sermons away from the accident. But people always asked. "He never really got away from that," his wife said. "But I don't think he ever minded, because he really felt God's presence that day on the bridge."
(The Tulsa World, Michael Overall, World Staff Writer, Dec. 14, 2011)
Francis Alley of Broken Arrow, 77, passed away December 12, 2011 in Tulsa. He was born June 13, 1934 in Big Pond, OK to Jess Scott and Needa Pearl (Barnett) Alley. Max married Goldie Marie (Higgins) June 28, 1952 in Bristow and together they created a beautiful family. A longtime evangelist, his mission in this world was to preach throughout the country. A "jack of all trades," Max had a talent for working with his hands. He enjoyed painting and woodwork. Max once owned an antique store. He and his wife were survivors of the I-40 bridge collapse. Max was preceded by his parents: Jess and Needa Alley; brother Scott Alley; sister Mary Anderson; and son-in-law Eddie Russell. Max is survived by his loving wife Goldie Alley of the home; daughters: Sherry Russell and Gay Jacobs, both of Broken Arrow; son Bucky Alley and his wife Teresa of Owasso; grandchildren: Jason Jacobs, Eddie Russell, Jr. and his wife Tara, Angela Heltzel and her husband Jeff, Nicole Schwegler and her husband Craig, and Andie Russell, all of Broken Arrow, Brooke Brimer and her husband Chris, Erica Mullinax and her husband Mike, Shelby Alley and Kayla Alley, all of Owasso; 10 great-grandchildren; sisters: Martha Cushing and Sue Pryor, both of Stroud, and Marilyn Brown and brother-in-law Terry of Prague. Bequests may be directed to Praise Gathering Fellowship Church, 708 N. Atlanta, Owasso, OK 74055. Visitation: 6-8PM Wednesday, December 14; service: 10AM Thursday, December 15, both at Praise Gathering Fellowship Church; interment: Floral Haven Memorial Gardens.
(Kennedy Kennard)
BROKEN ARROW - Lying in a hospital bed after the Interstate 40 bridge collapse in 2002, the Rev. Max Alley offered a divine explanation for his survival.
"If you look at photos of the accident," he said, "you won't see any skid marks. So who do you think stopped our truck?" Alley and his wife, Goldie Alley, were on their way to a Sunday morning revival when a barge drifted off course and hit the bridge. A 600-foot section collapsed, killing 14 people, including a 3-year-old girl. Alley's pickup fell 60 feet, landing on part of the broken roadway. But the truck stopped just before it would have vaulted into the water. "I'm not saying that God wasn't with the people who died, too," he explained in 2007 on the fifth anniversary of the bridge collapse. "In a way, you might say he was with them more, because he brought them to a better place - a place where I trust he will take me someday." Max Francis Alley died Monday at age 77. Funeral services are scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday at Praise Gathering Fellowship Church in Owasso, where his son, Bucky Alley, is the pastor, under the direction of Kennedy-Kennard Funeral Home. A visitation is planned at the church from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday. Alley became an ordained minister in the Assemblies of God in 1973, just a few years after a friendly invitation to church led to his conversion. "He really wanted to pastor a church," Goldie Alley said Tuesday. "He didn't really want to travel all the time, but he felt called to be an evangelist, so that's what he did." The bridge collapse left him with a broken back, but he fully recovered and turned the tragedy into a testimony. Alley and his wife wrote a book - "A Gathering of Angels at the I-40 Bridge" - and preached hundreds of sermons nationwide about their miraculous survival. They traveled the country in a Dodge Dakota that was the same model year and same silvery color - with the same four-door stretched cab - as the one that crashed off the bridge. It was identical, except for a custom decal printed in bold white letters on the rear window: "Survivors. May 26, 2002. I-40 bridge collapse. Webbers Falls, OK." Goldie Alley still drives it. "Even now," she said, "people will follow me to ask about it. And that's what we always wanted people to do, because it's a chance to tell our story." For years after the crash, the Alleys suffered gruesome flashbacks. They could close their eyes and still hear the screeching brakes, still see helpless drivers careening over the edge. Max Alley seemed especially haunted by the image of a diaper bag floating in the water. But he always gave the story an inspirational twist. "God is not indifferent to our suffering," he would tell audiences. "It's when we are hurting that God draws closer to us." In recent years, Alley tried to steer his sermons away from the accident. But people always asked. "He never really got away from that," his wife said. "But I don't think he ever minded, because he really felt God's presence that day on the bridge."
(The Tulsa World, Michael Overall, World Staff Writer, Dec. 14, 2011)
(Kennedy Kennard)
BROKEN ARROW - Lying in a hospital bed after the Interstate 40 bridge collapse in 2002, the Rev. Max Alley offered a divine explanation for his survival.
"If you look at photos of the accident," he said, "you won't see any skid marks. So who do you think stopped our truck?" Alley and his wife, Goldie Alley, were on their way to a Sunday morning revival when a barge drifted off course and hit the bridge. A 600-foot section collapsed, killing 14 people, including a 3-year-old girl. Alley's pickup fell 60 feet, landing on part of the broken roadway. But the truck stopped just before it would have vaulted into the water. "I'm not saying that God wasn't with the people who died, too," he explained in 2007 on the fifth anniversary of the bridge collapse. "In a way, you might say he was with them more, because he brought them to a better place - a place where I trust he will take me someday." Max Francis Alley died Monday at age 77. Funeral services are scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday at Praise Gathering Fellowship Church in Owasso, where his son, Bucky Alley, is the pastor, under the direction of Kennedy-Kennard Funeral Home. A visitation is planned at the church from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday. Alley became an ordained minister in the Assemblies of God in 1973, just a few years after a friendly invitation to church led to his conversion. "He really wanted to pastor a church," Goldie Alley said Tuesday. "He didn't really want to travel all the time, but he felt called to be an evangelist, so that's what he did." The bridge collapse left him with a broken back, but he fully recovered and turned the tragedy into a testimony. Alley and his wife wrote a book - "A Gathering of Angels at the I-40 Bridge" - and preached hundreds of sermons nationwide about their miraculous survival. They traveled the country in a Dodge Dakota that was the same model year and same silvery color - with the same four-door stretched cab - as the one that crashed off the bridge. It was identical, except for a custom decal printed in bold white letters on the rear window: "Survivors. May 26, 2002. I-40 bridge collapse. Webbers Falls, OK." Goldie Alley still drives it. "Even now," she said, "people will follow me to ask about it. And that's what we always wanted people to do, because it's a chance to tell our story." For years after the crash, the Alleys suffered gruesome flashbacks. They could close their eyes and still hear the screeching brakes, still see helpless drivers careening over the edge. Max Alley seemed especially haunted by the image of a diaper bag floating in the water. But he always gave the story an inspirational twist. "God is not indifferent to our suffering," he would tell audiences. "It's when we are hurting that God draws closer to us." In recent years, Alley tried to steer his sermons away from the accident. But people always asked. "He never really got away from that," his wife said. "But I don't think he ever minded, because he really felt God's presence that day on the bridge."
(The Tulsa World, Michael Overall, World Staff Writer, Dec. 14, 2011)
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