After a long life full of family and love, Edna Dean Kelso Downing passed away at the age of 82 in her adopted hometown of Fort Worth, Texas on Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. Born on Sept. 28, 1940 in Cullman, Alabama to John and Ruby Kelso, she grew up in a big farming family. She moved to Winfield, Kansas at 16, where she finished high school and eventually met the love of her life, Raymond Michael Downing, whom she married in 1960.
The young couple traveled around the country with the US Navy, welcoming two daughters into the world along the way, Pamela and Kelly. The family eventually settled in Texas, where Edna went on to become the grandmother of three adoring grandchildren, Elizabeth Black, Michael Black and Caleb Downing, the grandmother-in-law of Kayleigh Black and Jordyn Downing, and the great-grandmother of Logan Black, Colton Black and Luke Black and Lillie Downing.
Edna’s life was defined by family, and she was at the very heart of family life for all of those who loved her. She devoted her entire life to taking care of those around her, and there was nothing that she considered too much to give when it came to meeting the needs of others. She will leave an unfillable void in the lives of the family she leaves behind, but she can now rest in peace knowing that she has also left them with so many memories full of love and more life lessons than could ever be counted.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Michael Downing; daughter, Pamela Kay Downing-Black; parents, John and Ruby (Carr) Kelso; and several siblings.
Funeral services for Mrs. Downing will be 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 25 at Hanceville Funeral Home Chapel. Burial will follow the service at Holly Pond Cemetery. Visitation for the public will be from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Saturday at Hanceville Funeral Home.
