- Date Of Birth: June 24, 1930
- Date Of Death: May 22, 2019
- State: Colorado
Alice Mae was born at home in Cloverport, KY the sixth of eleven children of Raphael and Alice Lewis. When she was four years old, the family moved to Owensboro, KY where she attended St. Joseph’s Grade and High School. After graduation, she was accepted to and attended nurses’ training at Sts. Mary and Elizabeth’s Hospital in Louisville, KY. Her family was so proud to see her in her white cap and uniform. Classmates affectionately referred to Alice Mae as “Mousie.” While in nurses training, she took care of her uncle by marriage; Father Joseph Rives and the beloved Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk from Gethsemane, KY.
Following graduation from nurses training, she returned to Owensboro and obtained a position as a pediatric nurse for Dr. Medley. One surprising afternoon at Indian Lake Alice Mae, her brother Mike, and cousin Catherine Ruth Lewis were inspired by her sister Barbara to “quit work and go west” remembering their parent’s newlywed move to Cheyenne, WY. They loaded up Mike’s 1949 Oldsmobile and headed west. And except the times she was driving, Alice Mae had to sit on the pressure cooker the whole way there! Once they hit Colorado Springs, a nurses training friend of Alice Mae’s encouraged them to head to Denver where so many young single people were migrating from around the country.
Alice Mae got a nursing job immediately at Mercy Hospital in Denver, CO. The group joined the Cathedral Young People’s Club and the St. Thomas University Club where they made many, many great life-long friends. Crested Butte, Cripple Creek, Estes Park were favorite field trips. Ever the adventurer, Alice Mae moved with another Cousin Sis Rives to Milwaukee, WI continuing her work as a nurse.
Returning to Denver to help with the raising and schooling of her teen-aged sister Ann, who came to Denver for health reasons, Alice Mae soon became the beloved aunt Aussie Mae, Aunt Mae, Aunt Alice Smay, Aunt A-Mae, Aunt Alice the Great, and sometimes Aunt Alice Melinda Mae. Some of Alice Mae’s favorite times were trips to the mountains in all seasons, cross country skiing, following the CU Buffs through every victory and loss, many different apartments, and games. Alice Mae loved games: Boggle, Rummy Cube, and Bridge to name a few. She had a long-lasting bowling team who continued to meet for lunch long after the bowling days ended. Luncheons with groups of friends were a highlight for Alice Mae. She was an accomplished seamstress making dozens and dozens of garments for her sisters, nieces, and great nieces and their dolls. She worked for two doctors before finally leaving nursing to become a receptionist for a Denver law firm. Alice Mae was always willing to lend a professional hand to care for us when we were sick.
Alice Mae was blessed to receive the final sacraments of Confession, Holy Communion, and Anointing of the Sick and died peacefully of acute leukemia on May 22, 2019 at The Denver Hospice. She will be greatly missed and fondly remembered by many relatives and friends.
