Maybelle Woods

Maybelle L. Woods, of Grapevine, Texas, passed away peacefully on Christmas Day, in the company of family. Born May 2, 1921, in Denver, Colorado, she lived each of her 98 years with an engaging, warm smile for everyone she met.
After graduating high school in 1941, she turned down a scholarship to the Colorado School of Medicine, and married a handsome young member of the Air Force, Jesse L. Woods Jr.
Soon, Jesse was commissioned as an Air Force Officer, and sternly informed Maybelle that she must to learn to speak up “because an officer’s wife can not be be a wallflower!” She took his instruction to heart, and no one ever again accused her of fading into the woodwork.

Before long, they had a daughter, and then a son. A whirlwind of post-WWII deployments took them to locations across the US and the world, including Guam, Tokyo, and Germany. After retirement, they settled in Grapevine to be near his brother, Mayor Ira E. Woods.
For the next 50+ years, Maybelle devoted herself to a career as Not-A-Wallflower, taking an active part in the growing community of Grapevine. She and Jesse opened Maybelle’s Antique Shop, ran the old Ice House, helped with moving the Torian Cabin, and many other projects.
She was especially devoted to the Bay View Club, serving as president for many years. Maybelle was named an Honorary Rotarian by the Grapevine Rotary Club, and was honored by the Grapevine Historical Society with a Lifetime Membership Award. Other organizations she belonged to included The Women's Division of the Grapevine Chamber of Commerce, the Military Officers' Association of America, American Sewing Guild, and the "I Love to Sew" group. A talented seamstress, she designed and sewed most of her own and her family’s clothing for years, before focusing on her award-winning needlework, quilts and jackets.
Proud as she was of these accomplishments, she was most proud of being a loving wife, mother, grandmother, neighbor and friend. More than anything else, she was defined by her relationships and her love for others, who happily returned the favor and loved her right back.
Maybelle was preceded in death by her husband, Jesse L. Woods, Jr.; grandsons, James Denniston and Daniel Reeves; and fifteen brothers and sisters.
She is survived by her daughter, Lenora L. Denniston, and son-in-law, Michael Reeves; her son, Jesse L. Woods III and daughter-in-law, Lori; granddaughter, Victoria McElroy and grandson-in-law Phillip Todd; grandsons Jeffery Woods and Jesse Furrow; her brother, Arthur Burke; and too many dear friends to count.
Services will be Tuesday, January 7, 2020 at 1:00pm at Grapevine First Methodist Church, with visitation at 12:00, coordinated by Lucas Funeral Home of Grapevine.
Memorial donations may be made to Bay View Scholarship Funds, via Grapevine-Colleyville Education Foundation: http://gcedfoundation.org/