Alice Roberts

On September 1, 2013, Alice Roberts completed her stay on earth. She was born (1918) in Bisbee, AZ, to Mattie and “Pop” Parsons. In the fall of 1936 she and Charles (Chas) Roberts married. Thank you, Alice, for sharing with family and friends your quick smile and your incredibly infectious laughter. Thank you, for demonstrating to your children, grandchildren and great grandchildren, tenacity, daring, and unwavering faith. Thank you for being an openly strong but gracious woman in a time when smart, strong women were rarely appreciated. Thank you, Alice, for bravely risking everything with Chas to establish Chas Roberts Air Conditioning. In 1939, with one pickup truck, one phone and a portable card-table set up in their small Phoenix home, the business was born. Their two children, Chuck and Barbi, grew up stacking furnace filters, packing evaporative cooler pads, scribbling on service-order tablets.. Poor as church mice, this husband-wife team blended personalities and skills to accomplish feats simply impossible without their absolute commitment to equality, determination, energy, humor, respect and enduring love. With a strong beginning and the diligence of the next two generations, the family business thrives today. A take-charge manner and a stubborn notion of how to accomplish things defined Alice. Faith, and an aversion to failure, carried her to successes as a wife and mother, friend, businesswoman, international air-race winning pilot, sharp shooter, baker of biscuits, musician, vocalist and indefatigable Skip-bo champion. Finally, thank you Alice, for demonstrating dignity as advanced age and disease slowly stole your strength and fierce independence. Thank you for exhibiting acceptance never to be confused with resignation. We say goodbye to Alice as she greets those she loved who made this journey before her. Without question, Jesus is saying, “Chas, look who’s joined us! Hey, Chuck, Granny, Ione, Agnes and others . . . Come, welcome Alice. Get the organ warmed up, I feel a song coming on.” Alice was preceded in death by her husband, Charles Roberts Sr. (1997); her son, Charles "Chuck" Roberts, Jr. (1999). She is survived by her daughter, Barbara Roberts Pine (David) and from the Pines’ and Roberts’ families, five grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren. From the Parsons family she is survived by her sister, Olive, and her brother, Ed. The family of Alice extends deepest gratitude to the Zambakari family in whose home, love and care Alice thrived. Thank you, Palmcroft Baptist Church for faithful attention to this, your lifelong member. Thank you, Hospice of the Valley. What incredible, gentle participation you extended. The family suggests that in lieu of flowers, all expressions of respect be given to Hospice of the Valley. Visitation will be held Thursday, September 5, 2013 between the hours of 5:00pm and 8:00pm at Greenwood Memory Lawn Mortuary, 719 N. 27th Ave in Phoenix. A private burial has been planned.