Mary Sue Shelby McAlister

Born on February 10, 1919

Departed on October 1, 2019 and resided in Nashville, TN

On October 1, Mary Sue passed away at her home of 65 years. She lived a full life of 36,759 days. She was a kind and loving person who treated everyone with respect. Her passing leaves a loss in the hearts of many friends and family.

She was born and raised in Shady Grove (Duck River), Hickman County, Tennessee, and graduated Hickman County High School class of 1938, where she was a star center on the Bulldogs’ basketball team.

Later in life she remarked that from her center position on the court she was never allowed to shoot the ball, so at age 80 she began shooting hoops on a backyard goal and continued until she was over 90 years old.

Mary Sue graduated from Andrew Jackson Business College in Nashville and worked at Castner-Knott Company, Singer Sewing Machines Industrial Division, and retired from Vanderbilt University English Department in 1987.

She was a proud supporter of Vanderbilt athletics and at age 99 attended the 2018 Commodores 38-13 victory over the Vols and she continued attending Vanderbilt basketball and baseball games well after her 100th birthday. She celebrated the 2014 College World Series Championship with Mr. C. on her 96th birthday.

Mary Sue loved Christmas and as a craftsman she added dozens of home-made stitchery and ceramic keepsake items to hers and others’ decorations. She cross-stitched multiple Christmas ornaments every year for 39 years. She completed her 2019 Christmas ornaments in January, never to be behind in her tasks. She handmade Christmas stockings for each member of the family and at age 99 she completed a hand-sewn and hand-beaded tree skirt which was awarded a ribbon in the Tennessee State Fair. She filled her house with joy and love at Christmas and enjoyed entertaining guests.

Mary Sue was a strong-willed woman and a role- model for many. Those much younger often remarked that she would be wheeling us around in the nursing home when we got old. We thought that she would out-live us all.

She was a member of Hillsboro Church of Christ. Her favorite hymns were “Amazing Grace”, “Old Rugged Cross”, “How Great Thou Art”, “Holy, Holy, Holy”.

She is predeceased by her husband, Edward Leon McAlister, parents Annie Sue Totty and Anderson Brown Shelby and siblings Sam Walker Shelby, Polkie Josephine Thurman, Martha Elizabeth Alderson, David Brown Shelby, and Thomas Monroe Shelby. She is survived by daughter, Marilyn McAlister (Stacy Stewart), and son, Robert Michael McAlister, and grandson, Matthew Stewart.

Memorials may be sent to Stand Cemetery Perpetual Care, c/o Mike McAlister, 111 Page Road, Nashville, TN 37205-4421.

There were many adjectives which described Mary Sue:
Favorites:
Color: Pink
TV: “Antiques Road Show”, “Rachel Maddow Show”, “Last of the Summer Wine”, any sport
Car: Red Convertible (her dream car)
Favorite Vacations: Great Britain, Turkey, Greece, Hawaii, anywhere with her children
Flower: Rose
Author: Daniel Steel, Mary Higgins Clark

Was 5th generation Hickman County, Tennessee. Ancestral families Shelby, Totty, Bond, Thornton, Easley, Weatherly, Coleman, Alderson, Harrington, Blair, Morgan, Duncan, Alexander, Smith, Gowan, Bearden

Used Bobby Pins faithfully to “tame” her hair
Loved Whitt’s BBQ, pulled pork only with mild sauce
Loved to eat at Cheese Cake Factory, Ted’s, J Alexander’s, and Dalts
Always requested a “go-box” almost immediately after ordering a meal
Was a good cook
Rarely liked anything that she cooked
Liked to try new recipes
Liked to swap recipes
Always followed the recipe
Made scrambled eggs like no one else
Loved corn light bread
Made great corn light bread
Made fabulous fudge cake (no one else could make it from her recipe)
Sat by the oven door while the fudge cake was cooking to insure perfection
Loved discounts
Made fabulous coconut pie
Made fabulous chocolate pie
Loved butter pecan ice cream the best
Pushed food on her family w/love (or is it reverse?)
Hands Off! Feet
Loved to shop
Loved to shop for the perfect pair of shoes
Wore an almost impossible to find size 9-AAAA shoe
Loved to look at nice clothes
Loved to buy nice clothes
Loved to wear nice clothes
Loved to shop, period
Wore a perfect size 10
Not fond of dogs
Not fond of cats
Not fond of pets
Not fond of children, except for her own
Enjoyed making counted cross stitch art
Loved Christmas
Made a cross-stitched Christmas ornament each year for her children since 1981
Liked to make Christmas gifts
Finished making Christmas gifts by Summer
When ready to sew she said “I am going to get the machine out”
Was a good seamstress
Sewed many of her children’s clothes
Sewed several quilts
Did not have a favorite Christmas song
Loved Vandy sports
Enjoyed beating u.t. in any sport
Covered her mouth when laughing hard
Hard to get her to smile for a photo
Hated opening canned biscuits (the “explosion”, you know)
Liked to attract and watch hummingbirds (except when they fight)
Loved ceramics
Loved the ladies in her ceramics group
Kept cars for a long time
Never liked her hair
Rarely liked the way her hair was “fixed”
Loved to work in the yard
Loved to mow the grass
Mowed the grass well into her 80’s
Liked to pull weeds
Did not like housework
Always had a freezer(s) packed with food
Always wanted to learn to play the fiddle (honest, I heard her tell someone)
A lifelong Democrat
A closet liberal
Always washed her hands in warm water
Always watched the TV news starting at 4 p.m.
Always read the newspaper
Always read the sports section of the newspaper first
Liked the newspaper sections to be in order
Kept the newspaper sections in order
Expected the newspaper to be handed to her with the sections in order
Liked reading the “Ticked Off” section in the “West Side News”
Was an excellent driver
Liked to drive with her seat back to maximum (she called it “straight legged”)
Was recruited from Shady Grove School to play basketball at Hickman County HS
Always played the Center position in basketball when the court was in 3 divisions
Always wanted to shoot the basketball in high school
Never got to shoot the basketball in high school
Was a very good basketball shot at age 90
Fouled out (according to her) in about every basketball game that she played
Liked to second-guess officiating in sports
Always said “Well, I’m going to get our wonderful mail” when heading to the mailbox
Liked about anything that Vince Gill sang
Favorite expression “You’ve got another thought coming”
Favorite expression “I am gonna jerk a knot in your tail” (if you don’t straighten up)
Always rolled the toilet paper from the back
Liked a car with “a good heater”
Rarely napped
Loved her flannel pajamas in the Winter
Loved her flannel sheets in the Winter
Loved glitter on about everything
Was a faithful church goer or TV sermon (Dr. Stanley) watcher
Read her Bible daily
Was a lifelong member of the Church of Christ
Always accused of possessing “radar”, an innate ability to hear and detect what is going on in other parts of the house
Moved quickly around the house at “warp” speed, usually hard to see her
Did not like Halloween
Was scared of trick-or-treaters
Would always bend over to pick up a “lost” penny
Believed that a found heads-up penny was good luck
Would pass her found good luck penny to someone she loved
Was right-handed
Had good hand writing
Raised two left-handed children
Loved hosting her grandson in Summer at “Camp Nana”
Rode her first roller coaster (Space Mountain) when she was 70
Before leaving home she was famous for saying “Off, Off, Off, Off, Off” (referring to the four eyes and oven on the stove)
Always enjoyed Bea Arthur’s feminist character “Maude” on TV
Volunteered at Council on Aging in her 90’s
Volunteered helping deliver Meals on Wheels in her 90’s
Volunteered at age 100 with Nashville Diaper Connection
Was a perfect 10 as a Mother
Was a perfect 10 as a grandmother
Was a perfect 10 as a friend
Was a perfect 10 even in the size clothes she wore
Was a perfect 10

West Harpeth Funeral Home and Crematory.