Alice Marie Wade Short

On Friday, June 24, 2022, Alice Marie Wade Short, a no-nonsense wife, strict mother of two and loving but hard driving manager at Western Electric Manufacturing Plant, peacefully passed away at Southern Plaza Memory Care in Bethany, OK, at the age of 91.

Alice was born in an Oil Patch town of Carter Camp in Seminole County, OK on August 7, 1930. Her parents Oris Leathers and Hattie May Allen-Leathers raised Alice until she was two. At that time Hattie May died. Oris later remarried to Beadie Lewallen (Alice called her Mother). Before Alice's tenth birthday Oris died. Beadie raised Alice until she got a job and married Mark H. Wade on November 15, 1947, in Paris, TX. Alice rose above all these difficulties. It was evident that God had His blessing and His divine protection over her.

Alice had a rough and tumble life during those early 17 years. The depression, dust bowl, and WWII were tough times. They helped give Alice grit and made her into what her former coworkers describe as a hard hitting, no holds barred, but fair boss. Alice's employees loved her. When Alice transferred to a new area Ruby wrote on her thank you card; "you were the best supervisor we ever had. I'll miss you a lot, you stuck by us. So loads of luck on your new job."

After she hired on at Western Electric in 1958, she earned the name "Big Al" even though she was on 5'2" tall. Her bosses quickly noticed her determination to get the job done right and on time! Any obstacle in her way found out quickly why her nickname was "Big Al".

She started at the entry-level position, and was then promoted through the ranks quickly with her high learning skills. Her completion of a GED along with achieving an Associate Degree in management from Oscar Rose Junior College greatly helped her career. Because of this, she was the first female in the Cross Bar Shops to become "Supervisor" at Western Electric, Oklahoma City Manufacture facilities (a nationwide manufacturing complex). After a brilliant performance as supervisor, she was later promoted to department chief (2 ^nd level management) in 1978. Alice had a spectacular 30-plus year work record at Western Electric Manufacture Plant in Oklahoma City. It later was called AT&T and then the Lucent Plant.

Alice ran a tight ship at home, and always tried to keep everyone in line. She made sure everything was in its place and the house was spotless. One of her disciplinarian acts when her youngest child, Mark got out of line was to go to school with him and sit with him in class. The embarrassment would straighten him out for a while. She was very proud of her daughter Michele for graduating from college and becoming a schoolteacher.

Mark H. Wade, Alice's first husband died on October 15, 1986, partly because of health issues received while driving jeeps for General Patton's generals in WWII. This opened the door for Bob and Alice to have their first date on March 1, 1987 at Calvary Church of the Nazarene. On June 27, 1994, she and Bob R. Short were married in Honolulu, HI on Diamond Head Park. Alice planned the wedding and in attendance was; the preacher, his old dog, the photographer, and Alice and Bob on a beautiful sandy beach. She liked things quiet and simple.

During this transition period, Alice pursued her second love of hair styling. She went back to school and got her cosmetology degree after 1500 hours of training. She then worked for seven years as a beautician at Shepherd Manor Independent Living facilities in Oklahoma City, OK. She would say; "That job gave me the opportunity to witness about Jesus Christ to my 90 years old children".

She truly loved gardening, the outdoors, and nature. She loved to sew and design clothing. Jogging and running became another one of her great passions. She won the 5K road race in her age group at Lake Overholser in Bethany in 1996. She later went on to win second place in the two mile run in her age group at the prestigious Redbud Classic with over 5,000 total runners. It seemed nothing was impossible for Alice if she put her mind to it.

After marring Bob, she became a world traveler with him. She had the opportunity to visit almost any place mentioned in the Holy Bible. She traveled to England, Scotland, France, Italy, Greece, Island of Crete and Patmos, the Aegean Islands, Turkey, Israel, and the West Bank. Her passion was loving God and learning more about Him. She regularly attended Church and volunteered in many church activities and ministries. There is one thing Alice's friends will agree on, and that is there is never going to be another person like her. We salute you Alice and you will be greatly missed!

Alice was preceded in death by her parents; stepmother; first husband, Mark H. Wade, and her son, Mark Lane Wade. She is survived by Bob R. Short, her second husband of 28 years; daughter, Michele Wade; two grandchildren, Ryan Porter and Clint Porter; two great-grandchildren, Grant Porter and Wrenna Porter; three nephews, Randy, Paul and Danny Leathers, and three nieces, Debra Leathers Barnett, Kathy Leathers Koechel, and Glenda Reinke (who she thought of as a sister).

In lieu of flowers, the family prefers that contributions be made to the Alzheimer's Associations (Not-For-Profit) at 225 N. Michigan Ave., FL 17, Chicago, IL 60701.

Funeral services to celebrate her life will be officiated by Pastor Rick Green at 10:00 a.m., Thursday, June 30, 2022 at the Yanda & Son Funeral Home Chapel, Yukon, OK, with interment following at the Yukon Cemetery.