Leta Mae (Bayless) Hall, 88, of Phoenix, AZ, was born August 28, 1928 to J.D. and Ellen (Coffman) Bayless at home on a farm near Sudan, TX in Bailey County. She passed away in Glendale, AZ on August 5, 2017 after a seven-year battle with cancer. She was lucid until just a few hours before her death. She was overjoyed to be able to hold her four-month-old great-grandson for the first time the afternoon before she passed away to be with Jesus Christ, her Lord and Savior.
She graduated high school from Bula School, Bula, TX, in 1945. In 1947, she earned her A.A. degree in Elementary Education at Wayland Baptist Junior College in Plainview, TX. She taught second and third grade that next year at Bula School.
She married Cleo Wesley Hall on June 8, 1948. They had known each other almost all of their lives, living in the same community except for a three-year period during early childhood when her family lived in Arkansas. Cleo and Leta moved to Phoenix in March of 1957.
She was a homemaker extraordinaire who raised their four children, volunteered in the community, served in the Homemakers Extension Club of Maricopa County, participated in school/parent activities, but most of all served faithfully in her church in many capacities. She was a member of the First Southern Baptist Church in Glendale for 60 years. Cleo was a deacon at their church, and she helped him in that ministry, too. For 32 of those years she taught preschool children in Sunday School and then became a conference leader for the denomination for eight years, traveling to churches and conference centers in the Western USA, teaching people how to be better preschool teachers. Her favorite activities were to collect recipes, cook, sew, quilt, crochet, embroider, send greeting cards, and read. She loved her husband, family, and friends dearly and had the great gift of hospitality.
She is survived by her husband, Cleo Hall of Phoenix; children: Belva (Gene) Barrick of Glendale, Jerry (Donna) Hall of Glendale, Kenneth (Karen Sue) Hall of Columbia, TN, and Sherri (Dale) Oxley of Phoenix; her granddaughter Katie (Jon) King of Nashville, TN; two great-grandchildren: Reagan Mae King and Winston Barrick King of Nashville, TN; two sisters: Myrtie (Leland—deceased) Finley of Odessa, TX, and Wanda (Joe) Doak of Wylie, TX; two sisters-in-law: Oleta (Bill-deceased) Burris of Brownfield, TX, and Wanda (J.E.) Layton of Enochs, TX, and twelve nieces and nephews who reside in CA and TX. She also had four step-grandchildren: Shelli (Deron) Algeo of Orlando, FL, Keith Sypolt of Chattanooga, TN, Ryan (Laurie) Shumaker of Phoenix, Julie (Jerry) Sparks of Ashfork, AZ; and five step-great-grandchildren: Kaitlyn (Brandon) Negron and Bryce Algeo of Orlando, FL, and Gavin, Jakob, and Seth Shumaker of Glendale.
Leta requested that in lieu of flowers, contributions be made to the debt retirement for the building at her church.
Celebration services will be at her church, First Southern Baptist Church at Sahuaro Ranch, 10250 N. 59th Ave., Glendale, AZ 85302, on Saturday, August 12, 2017, with visitation at 9:00 a.m., funeral at 10:00 a.m., and graveside following the service at West Resthaven Cemetery, 6450 W. Northern Ave., Glendale, AZ. Her pastor, Dr. Mark Mucklow, will officiate.
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