Kenneth Sherwood Spradley

KENNETH SHERWOOD SPRADLEY, the last of 10 children, was born to LULA FLORENCE PONTON and JOHN ERNEST SPRADLEY on May 13, 1931 in a small farmhouse in Concho County, outside the West Texas Town of Eola, population of 240. The large Spradley family farmed cotton as sharecroppers, and the children attended school in a nine-teacher schoolhouse in Eola. It was expected that all the Spradley sons would develop the ability to solve any problem that might arise. This instilled a sense of rugged independence and self-confidence. Kenneth’s life was a testimony to these traits, which served him well in all his achievements.

After graduating from high school and technical drafting school in Houston, he went to work for Brochstein’s Inc., where he became a noted detail architectural draftsman. During the Korean War, Kenneth joined the Army and served as an MP in Stuttgart, Germany. Upon returning to civilian life, he continued his drafting and designing career. One of the projects upon which he worked and was very proud was the designing of an immense oval table that was used at a meeting of world leaders at Rice University.

In 1956, he met Joyce Childress, the love of his life, whom he married on September 30, 1957 in Houston, and then left on a honeymoon to South Texas, with a daytrip adventure to Mexico. Their marriage of 56 years and 7 months was full of much love and devotion, and many spontaneous kisses. They enjoyed many trips during that time, including several to the Cayman Islands, which they both thought were very beautiful.

In 1973, Joyce’s mother told Joyce that she would be coming to live with Kenneth and her. Joyce said, “Oh, you are?” to which her mother replied, “Yes, Kenneth has invited me to come, and I said, Yes!” So, of course, Alice Childress was welcomed with open arms, and lived with them for 10 years until her death. This is just one example of what a good and loving man Kenneth was.

Kenneth was a man of a few words, so when he did speak, everyone became quiet and listened. He was soft-spoken, but had a sharp wit, and could deliver a zinger without cracking a smile! If you didn’t know him well, you might wonder if he were making joke or were really serious, until finally, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly. Joyce and he were always present at the annual Spradley Reunion, and he loved to be in the middle of the hubbub, laughter and singing. It gave him great delight to be part of the Spradley clan and of the Childress family too. When telling someone how many nieces and nephews that he had, he said there were too many to count.

Kenneth departed this life on May 7, 2014 of a brief illness and was surrounded by his loving family.