Zona Gayle Baxter
Holman-Headland Mortuary & CremationsViewed: 1221
Posted by: Holman Mortuaries
[email protected]
334-693-3371
Date: Oct 24 2024 1:04 PM
HEADLAND…Zona Gayle Baxter, 94, a life-long resident of Headland, Alabama, died on October 23, 2024. Her long and full life was punctuated by her love of family, friends, and community, and her countless acts of kindness.
Memorial Services will be held at 2:00 P.M. Monday, October 28, 2024, in the Headland Methodist Church with Reverend Clayton Lassiter and Reverend Misty Barrett officiating. The family will receive friends from 1:00 until 2:00 P.M. Monday in the Family Life Center of the church. Holman-Headland Mortuary & Cremations is in charge of arrangements.
The family asks in lieu of flowers, tributes to her memory may be directed to The Headland Methodist Church Cemetery Fund, 103 West King Street, Headland, AL 36345 or The Blanche Solomon Memorial Library, 17 Park Street, Headland, AL 36345.
Zona Gayle was born on October 15, 1930, to Ben and Clara Davis. She enjoyed only child status for fourteen months until the birth of her sister, Missy. The family lived in or near Headland throughout her youth. After Headland High School, Zona graduated in 1952 from Huntingdon College with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Literature and French. In later years she completed requirements for a Master’s Degree in Secondary Education at Troy State University. She married William Baxter in 1952 and they became parents to Dale, Ben, and Tom.
Zona Gayle was an early role model for finding work-life balance. Her positivity and boundless energy at home, where she was dearly loved, left no doubt that family was her priority. That same positivity and energy was equally obvious at school in the company of her students and faculty mentors and friends. Except for one year of teaching at Young Junior High School in Dothan, Zona spent her professional career in the classrooms of Headland High School where she taught grammar, British literature, and French. One of her biggest joys as she aged was having a chance to say that former students had become some of her best friends.
Hallmarks of Zona Gayle’s character were her faith in God and her belief in the goodness within every person. Her beliefs and values were strengthened by her daily discipline of Bible study, reflection, and prayer. She was an active participant in Methodist Church activities and leadership her whole life. She led by example.
Through the years she was involved in various community service activities. She was a member of Delta Kappa Gamma, the Headland Study Club and the Henry County Historical Society. Zona served several terms on Huntingdon College’s Alumni Board. She was passionate about the preservation of a vibrant, growing library in Headland and enjoyed serving for many years on the governance board at the Blanche Solomon Memorial Library. She served as a board member at The Haven in Dothan. She was an avid supporter of the Henry County Youth Leadership program in its formative years. She was an advocate for those she called "the hero’s among us", lauding the work of the men and women of the police and fire departments, the paramedics and EMTs at every opportunity.
She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, William Baxter, and her son, Ben Baxter. She is survived by her sister, Annie Carol "Missy" Davis, her daughter, Dale Evans(Olan) and her son, Tom Baxter (Virginia). Her greatly loved grandchildren are Diana Baxter, Elyse Evans Young (Grant), Campbell Baxter, and Ross Evans (Tara).
HOLMAN-HEADLAND MORTUARY & CREMATIONS IS IN CHARGE OF ARRANGEMENTS. Phone 334-693-3371. You may sign a guest register at www.holmanmortuaries.com. This establishment does not own a crematory.
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