Opal Morgan

Opal King Morgan died May 19, 2012 about two months from her 99th birthday in Hillsboro. Funeral services will be held at 11 a. m. Tuesday, May 22, 2012, at Marshall & Marshall Funeral Directors Chapel in Hillsboro with Rev. Robyn Young of Line Street United Methodist Church officiating. Burial will follow at Ridge Park Cemetery in Hillsboro. Visitation will be from 9 a. m. to 11 a. m. prior to the service.

Opal was born July 22, 1913 to Clarence Rutherford and Laura (Davis) King of Abbott and was the last survivor of their nine children. Preceding her in death were her siblings Goldie King Dudley, Ray King, Julious King, Etta King Gregory, Adrian King, Tressie King Cox, Miriam King Williamson and Clarence Marion King.

Opal had a heart for helping people. She cared for her youngest brother, nicknamed “Bear”, through asthma attacks from the time she was 8 years old. When family members were sick, Opal became the go-to person. Her dad called her “Nurse Jane” after a popular comic strip of the day. Opal attended Abbott schools and in the 1920s played for the Abbott girls’ basketball team.

On Oct. 6, 1934, Opal married Moncie Willard Morgan. He preceded her in death on June 29,1979. Opal was also the last of Moncie's siblings and their spouses to die. She is survived by two daughters, Faye Morgan Slough and husband, Edwin, of Waco and Judy Morgan Pinkerton, and husband, Jerry, of Dallas; 5 grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren; 4 great-great grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. She was also preceded in death by a grandson, Charles “Chuck” Slough.

Moncie and Opal were members of the Vaughn United Methodist Church until they moved from the farm to Hillsboro in 1963 and joined Line Street United Methodist Church. Opal continued to attend regularly, make Sunday morning coffee and work in their annual Lord’s Acre fund raising celebration until she had to quit driving in 2010.

For several years, Opal worked in a sewing room in Hillsboro. She later worked at Town Hall Estates for a number of years, and after retiring she continued to volunteer there and visit friends, church members and relatives. She also helped what she called “the old people” with bingo two days a week, although she was older than most of them. She worked and volunteered for a total of 30 years at Town Hall before she moved there as a resident in February 2011. She loved working there and caring for the elderly.

Opal was only 35 years old when her first grandson, John, was born. Her son-in-law, Eddie, began to tease her and call her “Granny”. Thereafter, to this day, she was and is known as “Granny” by the entire family. She loved teasing and being teased by her two sons-in-law.

It is amazing to realize all the things that came about in her lifetime. Opal walked to school most of the time, or if lucky she was taken there by horse and wagon by her brothers or father. She remembered seeing her first car, first airplane, first radio, first telephone and first television. Always a little afraid of telephones, she felt she had to talk loud to be heard. She refused to consider owning a mobile phone.

Granny was a product of the depression and never wasted anything as long as she lived. Light bulbs were the lowest wattage and turned off when not in use. Water was preserved and never allowed to run. Windows were opened to cool the house because it “felt better”. She mowed her own grass until she was 80, at which time her daughter, Judy, insisted on wasting money and hiring someone to do the mowing. She lived independently, drove her car, and did her own grocery shopping until she quit driving at age 97. Opal shopped at Brookshire’s every Friday morning, after having read their ads and knowing what was on sale. She compared prices, ounces and sizes until she got the best buy.

Granny was an amazing woman. She has been a role model for her daughters, granddaughters, nieces and countless women she worked with and touched in her simple way. She truly was color blind when she looked at people.

The family requests that in lieu of flowers those wishing to honor Granny send a contribution to Line Street United Methodist Church, 304 Line Street Hillsboro, Texas 76645.

Funeral Service

Tuesday May 22, 2012 , 11:00 AM at Marshall & Marshall Funeral Directors

Visitation

Tuesday May 22, 2012 , 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM at Marshall & Marshall Funeral Directors