Ethel Irene Ellis

Ethel Irene Ellis, 87, passed away Saturday, November 16th, at her home in Georgetown, Texas after a long illness. "Mac," as she was known to family and friends, was born October 27, 1926 near Tankersly, Texas to Atlee Benard McCleery and Bessie Pearl (Sawyer) McCleery. Mac attended the Tankersly School through the eighth grade, and went on to graduate from San Angelo High School. She attended San Angelo College (SAC), the local junior college, where she was fortunate to win a scholarship for both years. She graduated from there in 1945 with a teaching degree.

Mac worked as a teacher, as an operator at the San Angelo Phone Company, and as a typist, receptionist, and office manager for several doctors and hospitals. However, being the information receptionist and switchboard operator

at the Tom Green County Courthouse was her calling. There, she learned a great deal about law enforcement, as well as the ins and outs of county politics.

About 1946, Mac began running around with a group of "kids" which were part of a larger crowd that ran together, playing volleyball at the Central Fire Station courts, bowling, and going to Ben Ficklin to pick pecans. One of the crowd was a young veteran named Ralph Ellis. Mac said that she liked Ralph, but that she thought he was stuck up. “But he was really shy,” she later amended. On June 11th, 1948, the couple married in San Angelo, Texas. Two children were born to the couple: Ralph D. and Lisa G. Mac spent time working with the Girl Scouts and Cub Scouts. She was also a member and officer of the PTA organizations at Santa Rita Elementary and Wall High School. Mac became interested in community organizing and politics. She was active in preserving Fairview school system, and participated in the successful campaign to elect Tom Massey to the Texas House of Representatives. She also volunteered to be a delegate to the Democratic Party state caucus, where she was selected as a delegate. In the late eighties, Mac and Ralph bought a house in Georgetown and retired.

Mac was an avid sports fan, and lived for football season to begin each year. Her favorite team by far was the Dallas Cowboys. She and Ralph traveled extensively to watch baseball and basketball games, and the couple attended the Texas Relays every year they could. At one point, Mac bought a scanner, and began to monitor police, fire, and EMS communications. She accrued such a wealth of information that some of the San Angelo Police would drop by her house for coffee, and to have her bring them up to speed on what happened in previous shifts. After retirement, the couple took up bird watching. With bird baths in the front and back yards, and multiple feeders set out, they were able to see an amazing number of different species over the years. Mac always retained her interest in politics, and became a fan of conservative talk shows and TV programs. She also kept up with events in San Angelo by reading the San Angelo Standard Times and by making frequent calls to family and friends there. She always traveled back to Angelo for the yearly McCleery Family Reunion.

Ethel is survived by her husband Ralph T. Ellis of Georgetown, son Ralph D. Ellis and wife Ann of Austin, and daughter Lisa G. Ellis of Hampton, Virginia; by sisters Mary Bradford and Ella Mae King, and sister-in-law Billie McCleery, all of San Angelo; by granddaughter Hether Brice, granddaughter Nairn Vaughn and husband Adam, great-granddaughter Taylor Brice-Keeling, and great-grandson Malakai Vaughn, all of the Austin area; by three nieces and one nephew; by numerous McCleery and Farris cousins, and by special members of the Brice family who interwove their lives with ours over the years.

A visitation will be held from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Wednesday, November 20, 2013, at Cook-Walden Davis Funeral Home in Georgetown, Texas. Funeral services will take place Thursday, November 21, 2013, at 2:00 p.m. in the chapel of Cook-Walden Davis Funeral Home. Inurnment is to be at Cook-Walden Capital Parks Cemetery and Mausoleum, 14501 North IH-35, Pflugerville, Texas 78660 at a later date.

Arrangements by Cook-Walden Davis Funeral Home, 2900 Williams Drive, Georgetown, Texas 78628 (512) 863-2564.