- Date Of Birth: September 18, 1921
- Date Of Death: September 19, 2016
- State: Indiana
Alice Mildred Crouch was born on a farm in the Salt Creek bottom (now Lake Monroe) to Raymond and Laura Shields. She was a sensitive, bright, lively little girl who was allowed to skip two grades by the time she finished elementary school. She had an active imagination, an indomitable will, and a creative spirit that at times caused her grief at home and school, but Mother always had an unquenchable spirit that carried her through. From the beginning, she was a survivor.
In her teens, Mother’s father was called to preach and eventually became a pastor, first at Sanders Pentecostal Church and later at a home mission church in Ramp Creek, Indiana. In the role of pastor’s daughter, she quickly learned that church comes first, God is great, and people are human. She also learned that God is a refuge in times of trouble, hard work and perseverance bring results, and faithfulness is its own reward. At Sanders, she was part of the Shields Sisters quartet singing in many local churches. After the move to Ramp Creek, she did all she could to help make the new work a success. Mother filled several roles while at Ramp Creek: janitor, youth leader, song leader, foreign missions director, and more. When the church built a new building, she and the other church women, with no experience, built Sunday school rooms in the basement. Today the brothers still laugh about how many nails were driven into the walls of those rooms.
In her twenties, Mother met and married Chester Crouch, who became the love of her life. They were married almost sixty years when Daddy passed away. In the early years, they lived in army camps; after the war, they built a home and started raising their only child – me, Hope. Though Mother and Daddy lived a rich and productive life, it would be thirty years before my dad would join the church. Mother went anyway, taking me along. One of our greatest joys was to see my dad join the church and live for God.
She found complete fulfillment in homemaking. She wasn’t interested in working outside of the home but enjoyed raising me, keeping an immaculate home, sewing beautiful clothes for herself and the family, working in her garden, canning, and in general making life pleasant for her family. She had a work ethic that was unmatched, and her hands were never idle. She loved creating and could expertly do crewel work, embroidery and decoupage. As she grew older she became an avid quilter specializing in appliqué and embroidered quilts. We still cherish the quilts she made throughout her life, and her example inspired me to start quilting, a hobby I now love.
As the years passed, she was blessed with a son-in-law, Russell Elkins, now pastoring at Shiloh Temple, and two grandchildren, Marty and Ryan. Her grandchildren became her life, and her greatest joy was to have them close to her. Even as teens, Marty and Ryan knew that “Minnie” as we called her, would always be there to provide unconditional love, wonderful food, a sympathetic ear, and plenty of good advice. Minnie had a strong character and a well-developed sense of ethics. She was the moral compass for the entire family and didn’t hesitate to speak up if she thought we were making wrong decisions. As she aged she continued to be a force in the church, heavily involved in the work of the Lord. She would have gladly given her life for her family and her church, the two things that meant the world to her.
Her strength was amazing. She was fully functional until her fall when it was discovered she had large tumors on her brain. Neither Mother nor the family had an inkling she was so sick. She carried on as usual. She believed in being fit and walked two miles each day for over thirty years and had walked the day before she fell. My mother was an amazing woman, and her strong character not only shaped my husband and me but our children and grandchildren. Words can never express what she has meant to us and how much she will be missed.
She leaves behind my husband and me, her cherished grandsons and their wives, Marty and Amy and Ryan and Ashley, and five great grandchildren: Adya, Mac, Vovie, Ezra and Miles.
She was predeceased by her husband, Chester; her parents, Laura and Raymond Shields; three sisters, Elveta Wampler, Ruth Williamson, and Jessie Eads as well as several nieces and nephews.
