Aletha Snowden

Aletha Snowden, born October 26, 1930, passed away Thursday July 14, 2011 after a long illness. Aletha was blessed with a very rich life. It isn’t everybody who can say they hunted Nazi spies as a child in the storm sewers of Lubbock, or survived a rattlesnake bite while protecting her grandson. The snake did not survive. Once described as the “meanest little kid in Tulia,” her story provides hope and inspiration for the parents of mean little boys and girls everywhere as she earned a degree from Texas Tech, then moved to central Texas, raised a family and became an upstanding member of the community. She worked at various times as a social worker, a realtor and a middle school teacher. She was a member in good standing of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She was an avid gardener and a longtime member of the Anderson Mill Gardening Club. Her gardens and landscapings were marvelous creations that delighted the senses and provided food and shelter for birds and other wildlife. She was passionate about birds and children. She enjoyed striking up conversations with complete strangers, and she had a knack for finding ways to keep young children entertained and industriously occupied. She enjoyed parties and dancing, and loved to tell about the time she threw her dance partner, the man in the kilt, under a table. She was always eager to demonstrate, especially to any of her doctors, her uncanny ability even at an advanced age, to stand on one leg with her eyes closed without falling.

She was preceded in death by two brothers, one sister and two husbands; and is survived by her brother Jerry and sister Betty, four sons Byron, Donald, Henry and Matt Stone, three step-children Jeff and Robin Snowden and Melissa Smith, eight grandchildren, and one great grandchild. Aletha’s friends and family will miss her exuberant spirit.

A memorial service will be held at Weed-Corley-Fish funeral home at 10 a.m. on Monday July 18, 2011.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her name to Hospice Austin or to Travis Audubon Society.