Vivian Alene (Brant) Grace

Vivian Alene Abigail Brant Grace was born to Ray and Nettie Brant on Tuesday, October 1, 1918.  She graduated as Valedictorian from May High School in 1936.  She married Everett Leroy Grace I, on April 19, 1937. Vivian was a long-term resident of May, Oklahoma.  She was a homemaker and retired from the former Fruit of the Loom Factory in Woodward.

She is survived by nine children,  Ellen Pond and husband Lloyd of Arkansas City, KS; Gayle Whitten and husband Don of Ames, OK; Linda Aytes  and  Melvin Wilson of Binger, OK; John Grace of Carnegie, OK; Jane Carrell and husband Randell of Foreman, AR; Janiece Lee and husband Gary of Lawton, OK; Carol Carrell and husband Chigger Cosner of Woodward, OK; Sue Best and husband Ed of Enid, OK and one stepson: Bill Wilson, Amarillo, TX, daughter in law Judy Grace of Gage, OK.  She is also survived by 28 grandchildren, Jerry Wichert and wife Lise' of Stillwater; Debbie Barta and husband Kim of Bonner Springs, KS; Carol Maxwell and husband Jim of Arkansas City, KS; Charles Pond and wife Nancy of Arkansas City, KS; Joy Trillo and husband Vic of Wellington, KS; Dee Dee Ogden and husband Irv of Fairview, OK; Tammy Arbgast and husband Alan of Woodward, OK; Everett L. Grace III and wife Jessica of Helena, OK; Michael Grace and wife Amanda of Broken Arrow, OK; Rick Whitten and wife Amanda of Helena, OK; Leroy Aytes of Woodward, OK; Lynn Aytes and wife Kayla of Laverne, OK; Danny Aytes and wife Michelle of Lookeba - Sickles, OK; Cyndie Johnson and husband Johnnie of Texarkana, TX; Stacy Todd Carrell and wife Melinda of Foreman, AR; Jeff Barron and wife Amanda of Woodward, OK; Christy Smith and Chad Crawley of Choctaw, OK; Stephanie Deen and husband Jarrett of El Dorado, KS; Jeremy Lee and wife Melinda of McLoud, OK: Justin Lee of Bluffton, SC; Chris Carrell and Jennifer Carrell of Gage, OK; Kevin Carrell and wife Stephanie of Norman, OK; Dr.  Pam Miller and husband Hadd of Runaway Bay, TX;  Tracy Carrell and wife, Teri of Denver, NC; Eric Cosner of Harrah, OK; BrianCosner and wife Amy of Tuttle, OK; Mitch Tindell and wife Jenae of Norman, OK; Mandy Hron and husband Trevor of Higgins, TX.  She is also survived by numerous great grandchildren and great great grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her husband Everett Grace, parents Ray and Nettie Brant, daughter Evelyn Wichert, two sons Everett (Bud) Grace and Dale Grace, grandchildren Becky Whitten and Randy Carrell; three sisters, Lorene, Betty Jo and Jean; two brothers, Vernon and John and two son in laws, Wayne Wichert and Eugene Carrell and one grandson in law, James Barton.

She and husband Everett raised eleven children.  They were proud of the fact that all eleven children graduated from high school.  They both worked hard to provide for their family.  She was an excellent seamstress, and made many of the clothes for her children, and later for her grandchildren; even for Barbie dolls.  She once altered all of the basketball uniforms for the May basketball teams.

She had many interesting stories of her life growing up, such as riding in a wagon to get supplies in Woodward when she was a small child and walking several miles to school.  For a period of time, her family lived in Martha, OK, and she recalled taking trips to Lake Lawtonka and climbing on the mountains.  While living at Martha, she saw a red coat that she wanted.  Her parents had already got her a coat, so they told her if she wanted it, she would have to earn the money, which she did, working in the cotton fields.

After she and Everett were married, they lost their first home to fire.

She told a story about a time when Everett's brother, Benton came to their house one morning.  He had been taking care of their father's cattle, and he had decided to go to Montana.  He told them that someone would have to take care of the cattle.  Everett had to work, and he asked her if she could get the cattle and get them to their place.  She said she would try and rode bareback to where the cattle were located.  She rounded them up and started home.  When they approached a bridge, the horse balked and didn't want to cross.  The cattle scattered, but she held her ground and eventually the horse crossed the bridge.  She once again gathered the cattle and got them home.  When Everett arrived home that evening, he asked if she had gotten the cattle.  When she explained what happened, he said “You didn't get off the horse and lead it across did you?”  She said no, and he said “Good, because that would have ruined the horse.”

Her family, especially little children and babies, were her greatest joy.  She loved to spend time with family at her home in May and hosted family reunions on Memorial Day for many years.  She was never afraid to learn new things.  She got her first driver's license when she was 81 years old.  She learned to use computers and email, and even had a cell phone.  Even though she said she would never get on an airplane, she took three trips to Europe to Belgium, Germany and Spain.  While staying in these locations, she was able to travel to other countries in that part of the world.

The first words always spoken when someone arrived at her door was “Have you eaten?”  Whether the answer was yes or no, she would find something to feed you.  Some of the best food ever eaten came from her kitchen.  She baked her own bread at least twice a week and there was nothing better than the smell of her fresh baked bread.  It didn't matter what time of the day or night you showed up at her home, she would welcome you.  She was something of a night owl and would stay up late visiting when anyone spent the night in her home.

There were many hours spent at her house in May playing games.  She especially loved Scrabble, Skip-Bo, Uno, Trivial Pursuit, Yahtzee and Rummikub.  And make no mistake about it, she played to win and beat most of us most of the time.  Playing Trivial Pursuit, it would appear that she was asleep, but if you asked her a question, she would open her eyes and answer the question.  In her later years, she spent time at different children's homes and her great grandchildren also learned how to get beat by her.

She loved crossword puzzles, although she would get the puzzle books that had different kinds.  She could solve them all. 

Her son John lived next to her for many years, and she cared for him until she was no longer able to do so, well into her 90's.  At Christmas time, they made sure they bought gifts for each individual in the family.  She was always planning what she would buy and had to make sure there were a sufficient number of the gifts, as she purchased them according to age and gender so that everyone in each group got the same gift.

She didn't complain about any of the hard work that she did, usually the first one up in the morning and the last to go to bed in the evening.  As she got older and had to accept help, she was always appreciative of anything that anyone did for her, no matter how small.

Her goal in her later years was to reach 100 years, which she did on October 1.  A birthday party to commemorate her 100th birthday was held on October 13.  At least 87 people attended the party.  She was a great lady, and the world lost a special person when she passed away.  She was indeed one of the members of the greatest generation.