Melissa Ann Simms

Melissa Ann Simms, 52, a resident of Montgomery, Alabama, died on June 6, 2022, after an extended illness. Melissa grew up in Exton, Pennsylvania, as the only child of John Peter Kent, emeritus professor of English at West Chester University, and Joann Gale Kent, a lifelong librarian. Melissa was a “lifer” at Villa Maria Academy in Malvern, Pennsylvania, where she played field hockey and sang in madrigals before graduating in 1987. At Vanderbilt University, Melissa majored in English and Anthropology, earning her B.A. in 1991 after having played on the school College Bowl team, having participated in the university chorale, and having met her future husband, Nathan Wayne Simms Jr. Melissa and Wayne married in 1993 and settled in Montgomery, after which Melissa received her Master of Liberal Arts degree from Auburn University at Montgomery in 1996 upon completion and defense of her thesis, “Three Readings of Mark Helprin’s Winter’s Tale.” Over the course of two decades, Melissa served AUM as an adjunct instructor of English, conveying the fundamentals of grammar, literature, and persuasive writing to a generation of entering college students and earning the 2005 Robbie Walker Adjunct Teaching Award. Outside of work and school, Melissa was an avid reader who enjoyed numerous fantasy and science-fiction novels as well as the company of friends who participated in her various book groups; in addition, Melissa enjoyed what travel afforded, especially the restaurant and entertainment offerings of Broadway and London’s West End, the pleasures of Caribbean cruising, and the scenery of such locales as Ireland, Iceland, Italy, and Greece.

Melissa was preceded in death by her parents, Peter and Joann Kent. She is survived by her husband, Wayne Simms; by her beloved daughter, Leah Elizabeth Simms; by her sister-in-law, Leoria Anne Simms; by numerous cousins and collateral relations by marriage; and by the many book buddies, conversation partners, and house cats that brightened her days even unto the very end.

Friends and relations are cordially invited to a visitation at Leak Memory Chapel, 945 Lincoln Road, Montgomery, Alabama, beginning at 10:00 am with a memorial service to follow at 11:00 am on June 19, 2022. Although botanical memorials are welcomed, donations in lieu of floral gifts may be made to such charities as Montgomery’s Women of Hope or a hospice agency of one’s choice in celebration of Melissa’s life.

Melissa’s family would like to express its thanks to all of her caregivers over the course of her illness, particularly including the staff of Hospice of Montgomery (especially her nurse, Nedra Kelly) and the medical staff and volunteers at both Montgomery Cancer Center (Dr. Stephen Davidson) and Central Alabama Radiation Oncology (Dr. Alexander Whitley), as well as to the friends and relations who have been bringing meals, cheer, and sympathetic ears over the course of Melissa’s journey.