Alice Leah (Crabtree) Gregory

Thursday, March 2, 2017

Nov. 20, 1914 - Feb. 1, 2017

TUCSON, Ariz. -- Alice Leah (Crabtree) Gregory passed away on Feb. 1, 2017, at the age of 102.

Alice was born at home on the family's homestead in Cheyenne County, Kan., on Nov. 20, 1914, the oldest of four children. She grew up on farms in Cheyenne County and attended Prairie Rose, a one-room school, first through eighth grade. She graduated from St. Francis, Kan., High School in 1934.

After high school, Alice obtained a teaching certificate and taught in one-room country schools in Cheyenne County. After raising her five children, she completed her college education which was obtained over several years with much determination.

She attended summer school at Union College, took remote courses from Kearney State Teacher's College, drove to McCook Junior College, then completed her final courses at Colorado State College (now University of Northern Colorado), where she graduated in 1966 with a BA in elementary education and mathematics. She finished a master's degree in educational media in 1969. Alice taught in St. Francis, Kan., Haigler, Neb., and Granada, Colo., grade schools, then was the librarian at Lamar Community College in Lamar, Colo.

Alice met William Richard Gregory while teaching school at the Hackberry school in Cheyenne County and they were married on April 25, 1939, in Smith Center, Kan. They raised five children on the family ranch/farm 20 miles northwest of St. Francis. When Rich and Alice retired from farm life, they moved to Tucson, where they lived the rest of their lives.

Alice was a welcome volunteer at the Tucson SDA Church School until she was well past the age of 90. She had a warm heart and loved her family above anything else. She read her bible through every year for over 25 years and has written many stories, articles and bible studies that she has shared with her family. She was a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church her entire life and looked forward to the Lord's soon return.

Alice was preceded in death by her husband, William Richard Gregory; parents, Frank and Mae Crabtree; brothers, Lynn Crabtree and Lloyd Crabtree; sisters, Ethel (Crabtree) Rath and Floy (Crabtree) Fisher; brother-in-law, Owney Fisher; and many loved relatives and friends from the three corners area.

She is mourned by her children, Dwight and Leah (Gregory) Brewer of St. Francis, Kenny and Leone (Gregory) Carlson, Sherri Gregory of Lincoln, Neb., Dick and Sharon (Potter) Gregory of Spring, Texas, and Eunice (Gregory) Richard of Tucson; nephews, Mel Fisher and Garry and Sharon (Vesley) Fisher; niece, Richard and Sharna (Fisher) Richardson; 13 grandchildren: Lisa (Brewer) Olson, Brenda (Brewer) Schilk, Kevin Beeson, Kelly (Beeson) Barger, Shelley (Beeson) Parker, Jeri (Beeson) McEwen, Sandra (Harden) Larsen, Tad Harden, Sheila (Gregory) Harriman, Melissa (Gregory) Pipich, Jerrod Gregory, Casey Richard and Shane Richard, 21 great-grandchildren and six great-great grandchildren; many nephews and nieces and friends.

Memorial service are Saturday, June 3, 2017, at 2 p.m., in the Methodist Church, Haigler, Neb., and burial at the Haigler Cemetery.

Memorials may be given to Tucson Arizona Suguaro Hills SDA Grade School, c/o Eunice Gregory, 2321 S Double O Place, Tucson, AZ 85713.