Shirley Marie (Alexander) Howes died on June 30, 2021, at the Aspen Creek Assisted Living Center in Anchorage, Alaska. She was a Texas gal - born and bred and she was meaner than a snake!
Her folks were Texans for generations going back to Austin's colony in the 1820s. She always said that you could take her out of Texas, but you couldn't take the Texas out of her!
She was born on Oct. 6, 1938, in San Antonio, Texas, down by the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks as her dad – Leslie Duff Alexander – was a railroad conductor. Her mom was Mary Maugerite Stuart, a rancher's daughter. Her mom had always told her to marry someone from "across the fence," meaning someone close to home.
Dutifully, she married Ralph C. Howes Jr., a cadet at Texas A& M University who had been born three blocks away and three weeks earlier. Then followed 63 whirlwind years of military service and missions for their church.
Along the way were born Susan (Henderson), Lynn (Searcy) and Brian, as well as numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Among her many talents was that of a great cook; she could make apple pie with an onion. She served as Society Editor for several newspapers and was the Secretary for a multitude of Commissioners of Natural Resources for the State of Alaska. She was the U.S.
Army Wife of the Year in 1973. She was a busy gal!
Her children, when asked by their teachers for parent volunteers, always replied "My momma can do it!"
She had a heart as big as all outdoors and a smile that made her a friend to all. She will be missed but certainly not forgotten.
Published in The Anchorage Daily News on July 7, 2021 on Page A 3.
Her folks were Texans for generations going back to Austin's colony in the 1820s. She always said that you could take her out of Texas, but you couldn't take the Texas out of her!
She was born on Oct. 6, 1938, in San Antonio, Texas, down by the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks as her dad – Leslie Duff Alexander – was a railroad conductor. Her mom was Mary Maugerite Stuart, a rancher's daughter. Her mom had always told her to marry someone from "across the fence," meaning someone close to home.
Dutifully, she married Ralph C. Howes Jr., a cadet at Texas A& M University who had been born three blocks away and three weeks earlier. Then followed 63 whirlwind years of military service and missions for their church.
Along the way were born Susan (Henderson), Lynn (Searcy) and Brian, as well as numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Among her many talents was that of a great cook; she could make apple pie with an onion. She served as Society Editor for several newspapers and was the Secretary for a multitude of Commissioners of Natural Resources for the State of Alaska. She was the U.S.
Army Wife of the Year in 1973. She was a busy gal!
Her children, when asked by their teachers for parent volunteers, always replied "My momma can do it!"
She had a heart as big as all outdoors and a smile that made her a friend to all. She will be missed but certainly not forgotten.
Published in The Anchorage Daily News on July 7, 2021 on Page A 3.
Shirley Marie (Alexander) Howes died on June 30, 2021, at the Aspen Creek Assisted Living Center in Anchorage, Alaska. She was a Texas gal - born and bred and she was meaner than a snake!
Her folks were Texans for generations going back to Austin's colony in the 1820s. She always said that you could take her out of Texas, but you couldn't take the Texas out of her!
She was born on Oct. 6, 1938, in San Antonio, Texas, down by the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks as her dad – Leslie Duff Alexander – was a railroad conductor. Her mom was Mary Maugerite Stuart, a rancher's daughter. Her mom had always told her to marry someone from "across the fence," meaning someone close to home.
Dutifully, she married Ralph C. Howes Jr., a cadet at Texas A& M University who had been born three blocks away and three weeks earlier. Then followed 63 whirlwind years of military service and missions for their church.
Along the way were born Susan (Henderson), Lynn (Searcy) and Brian, as well as numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Among her many talents was that of a great cook; she could make apple pie with an onion. She served as Society Editor for several newspapers and was the Secretary for a multitude of Commissioners of Natural Resources for the State of Alaska. She was the U.S.
Army Wife of the Year in 1973. She was a busy gal!
Her children, when asked by their teachers for parent volunteers, always replied "My momma can do it!"
She had a heart as big as all outdoors and a smile that made her a friend to all. She will be missed but certainly not forgotten.
Published in The Anchorage Daily News on July 7, 2021 on Page A 3.
Her folks were Texans for generations going back to Austin's colony in the 1820s. She always said that you could take her out of Texas, but you couldn't take the Texas out of her!
She was born on Oct. 6, 1938, in San Antonio, Texas, down by the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks as her dad – Leslie Duff Alexander – was a railroad conductor. Her mom was Mary Maugerite Stuart, a rancher's daughter. Her mom had always told her to marry someone from "across the fence," meaning someone close to home.
Dutifully, she married Ralph C. Howes Jr., a cadet at Texas A& M University who had been born three blocks away and three weeks earlier. Then followed 63 whirlwind years of military service and missions for their church.
Along the way were born Susan (Henderson), Lynn (Searcy) and Brian, as well as numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Among her many talents was that of a great cook; she could make apple pie with an onion. She served as Society Editor for several newspapers and was the Secretary for a multitude of Commissioners of Natural Resources for the State of Alaska. She was the U.S.
Army Wife of the Year in 1973. She was a busy gal!
Her children, when asked by their teachers for parent volunteers, always replied "My momma can do it!"
She had a heart as big as all outdoors and a smile that made her a friend to all. She will be missed but certainly not forgotten.
Published in The Anchorage Daily News on July 7, 2021 on Page A 3.
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Eternal Wife of LTC Ralph Howes Jr. USA Joshua 24:15
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