Sydney Ann (Shumate) Atkins

Sydney Ann was born in Huntington, West Virginia, the first child of Ruby (Manning) and CC Shumate. Shortly thereafter, the family moved to Texas – first to Houston, then to Dallas which became her true home and touchstone for most of her life. There she welcomed her beloved younger brother, Paul, four years her junior.

She was raised in the Highland Park United Methodist Church, attended the Hockaday School, and graduated from Highland Park High School. Due to shifting school policy, she skipped a grade, so when she enrolled as a freshman at Southern Methodist University, she was only sixteen. There she promptly met a young theology student, Clarence E. Atkins, at the student union. The relationship blossomed and Sydney Ann accelerated her studies to graduate in three years with a bachelor’s degree in art so that she could be married and accompany Clarence to graduate school at Emory University in Atlanta.

In Atlanta she taught a second grade class with Sue Thompson, the wife of a beloved theology school faculty member, Dr. Claude Thompson. A year later, (about 1953) a momentous decision faced the young couple – return to Dallas to serve a thriving existing congregation or return to Clarence’s home state of Missouri to start a new Methodist church in the relatively small town of Springfield. They chose Springfield and – as the poet says – that made all the difference. There, for the next 27 years, they built a family, a church, a community - a life - that was deeply connected to so many other wonderful people and places.

Sydney Ann threw herself and her prodigious talents joyously and whole-heartedly into her family and her extended church family. Her two sons were born in Missouri – but they were raised as Texans! (in the best sense possible). The first book report either child did in school was on “13 Days to Glory” the popular story of the Battle of the Alamo authored by her SMU professor, Lon Tinkle. Nearly every summer involved a family trip to Dallas and/or other Texas locales, with a mandatory singing of “The Eyes of Texas” as soon as the Red River was crossed.

Sydney Ann was an accomplished artist in many media. Several of her student oil paintings are treasured in the homes of extended family. Her aesthetic sensibilities can also be seen throughout the building and grounds of the King’s Way United Methodist Church in Springfield. In addition to seasonal liturgical banners, she created scores of Christmons, original art for her annual Christmas cards, she guided children and youth in creating boats for a miniature Sea of Galilee, she costumed Christmas pageants, and took intense pleasure and interest in decorating the church altar in unconventional yet reverential ways. Perhaps her most enduring effort was the design of the kneeler covers surrounding King’s Way’s oval altar area. (The ellipse was a shape that Sydney Ann always valued for its symbolism of the eternal. As drawings were prepared, her omnivorous eye saw the perfect pattern in a worn bar of soap that was shared with the architect). Numerous ladies in the congregation spent hours beautifully needlepointing Sydney Ann’s designs which are Christian symbols in vibrant colors – many translated into the vernacular imagery of the natural world of the Ozarks.

Her love of natural beauty extended to the landscape surrounding the church where she and others – especially Treva Hall – spent countless hours designing, planting and tending. To this day, their children experience PTSD upon hearing the phrase “we’re going to weed the vinca.”

Both Sydney Ann and Gene (he had opted for the use of his middle name rather than Clarence), were students of history and led several Wesley Heritage trips to Britain. In celebration of their twentieth-fifth year serving King’s Way, the congregation gave them a trip to Greece and Turkey following the journeys of the Apostle Paul which was truly a highlight of their lives – and the source of an enduring appreciation and love of Greek food.

Sydney Ann was a great hostess and delighted in hosting dinners and guests in her home. In Springfield she was often aided in these occasions by Odessa Johnson, beloved friend and long-serving house-keeper, church custodian, and honorary family member.

King’s Way became a thriving congregation of over 1,000 congregants – the second or third largest in the Missouri West Conference. Nevertheless, in 1981, Sydney Ann and Gene dutifully followed the directive of the United Methodist Bishop of Missouri and moved to Kansas City to serve what was then the largest church in the conference, Blue Ridge Boulevard United Methodist Church. They served productively there for another nine years.

In retirement, Sydney Ann and Gene became devoted members of the Country Club United Methodist Church in Kansas City. Sydney Ann continued her artistic endeavors. She continued to paint, write poetry and create liturgical art. One of her final works was a banner for use in wedding ceremonies featuring the phrase in large script, “Go Out In Joy!” A fitting summation of her faith and attitude toward life.

Sydney Ann once dabbled in writing music for a church choir. Her composition “Pouring Down” includes the refrain –

It’s pouring down, it’s pouring down,

God’s grace is pouring down around us,

All around us.

Sydney Ann’s life was a testament to this truth and, indeed, a part of that grace that surrounds us all. Her life is a song that plays on in the lives of her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.

She is survived by her sons, Dan (Kim) Atkins and David (Emilie) Atkins; grandchildren, Sarah (Adam), Katie (Justin), Danny (Kristina), Ben, Andy (Heather), Jack; great grandchildren, Ruby, Emmeline, Harrison; sister-in-law, Rozanne Shumate; and nieces, Shannon, Jill and Laura; and nephew, Chris.

Her celebration of life service will be held on Friday, June 13, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. at the Country Club United Methodist Church, followed by a reception with refreshments in the church library. The church will livestream the service beginning shortly before 10am at both websites: https://countryclubumc.org/media/live and on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_Unz3K80VE

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to SMU – Meadows School of the Arts, King’s Way UMC, Country Club UMC, or the charity of your choice.