Oretta Askew's Obituary
Artha “Oretta” Yates Askew was born in McKinnon (Houston County), TN, December 23, 1923, beloved daughter to Henry and Mary “Polly” Yates and cherished sister to Aubry Yates and Annie Fowler. She was married in 1943 to William “Billy” Askew (deceased) and is survived by her five children, Sandra Chandler, Barbara Askew, Henry Askew (Peggy), Judy Rutledge, and Rosemary Askew (Martinez); and by her four grandchildren, Mary Kay Steele, Sarah Fischer (Brandon), Bill Rutledge, and Megan Askew; and her great-grandchildren, Brittany Steele and Lucas Fischer. Mrs. Askew left the small town of McKinnon after graduating from Erin HS and moved to Birmingham, Alabama to work at Pitizt Department Store. As a young lady she moved to Washington, DC during war times to work in the offices of the FBI. After marrying she temporarily moved to several cities on the West Coast to be near her husband while he served in the Navy during wartime. When the war ended she and her husband settled in Memphis where they raised their five children. The Askew family were members of St. Matthews Methodist Church, where Mrs. Askew remained an active member for all of her life. She served on the Methodist Women’s Council and volunteered on many different committees. From the seventies through the mid-nineties Mrs. Askew was a founding member and a volunteer for the Conversational English Class, where she made many life-long friends from Memphis’ international community. Her love of travel took her to Italy, Africa, the Holy Land and Egypt in addition to many, many places within the United States. She moved to Hummingbird in Colonial Acres in the early seventies and established loving relationships with her neighbors. One of Mrs. Askew’s greatest passions was being outside and throughout her eighties and nineties she was frequently seen sweeping her driveway or walking up and down the sidewalk for exercise under the watchful eyes of her dear neighbors. She spent her last months living at Brookdale Senior Living, constantly surrounded by her loving family. Mrs. Askew was a very kind, loving, compassionate lady who had many friends. Her love and devotion to her family was the heart of who she was and every family member is blessed to have shared her love and her laughter. The family will receive friends from 11-1 p.m., Saturday, August 20 at Memorial Park Funeral Home. Graveside services will immediately follow in Memorial Park Cemetery. Memorial donations may be sent to the Memphis Union Mission or the Church Health Center. Funeral arrangements have been trusted to Memorial Park Funeral Home and Cemetery, 5668 Poplar Ave. Memphis, TN 38119, “Celebrating Life Behind the Stone Wall”.
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