Loretta Drake Alexander

Loretta Drake Alexander, 95, of Abilene, passed away on January 3, 2024. 

Burial will be at Ross Cemetery, Baird, Texas on Sunday, January 7, 2024, at 11:00 am.  The service will be under the direction of Parker-Jacobs Funeral Home. 

Loretta was born in Childress County to Dora Young Drake and Charles P. Drake on November 24,1928. She graduated from Childress High School. In 1962, then earned her BS degree from McMurry College and later a Master’s degree from Abilene Christian University in 1973.

She married Bill Alexander in 1949, in Baird, Texas. They were married for 60 years.

She worked for many years as an educator for AISD. She was also a long-time member of First Methodist Church.

Loretta enjoyed gardening, quilting, sewing and especially being a member of the Harvester’s Sunday School class at First United Methodist Church.  As a child of the Depression, she took pride in working hard. This was evidenced in her pride in being able to ‘pull’ up to 300 lbs of cotton in a day. When asked when she started working in the cotton fields, she replied that when she was born, her mother put her on her cotton sack. When she was old enough to walk, she was given her own sack. After retirement she made 1000 pillows for Love and Care Ministries over a period of several years. She also volunteered for the soup kitchen at Antioch CME for many years. 

In addition to her volunteer work, she earned her four gallon pin for her donations to the Hendricks Regional Blood Bank. 

She was preceded in death by her parents Dora and Charles Drake, her brother Milton and her sister Leta Joyce Weaver. 

She is survived by her son Jimmy and his wife LuAnn, her daughters Jan and husband Steve Ripley and Teri and her husband Jeff Walter; and her grandchildren Meredith, Clayton, Erika, Logan, Mason, Dane and 12 great grandchildren. 

Memorials may be made to Meals on Wheels. 

Our family wishes to thank Hendrick Hospice as well as Wisteria Memory Care for their outstanding care. 

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