When Erlyne Tidwell was born on 20 Oct 1920, in Memphis, Shelby County, Tennessee, her father, Sylvester Arthur Tidwell, was 34, and her mother, Lillian Elizabeth Miller, was 27. She was born third out of a family that grew to four boys and three girls:

●Neal Emerson Tidwell 1917–1968
●Mary Elizabeth 'Sis' Tidwell Tully 1918–2008
●Erlyne (—) Tidwell Allen 1920–2011
●Lois A Tidwell Stegall 1923–1968
●Robert Arthur Tidwell SSgt 1926–2007
●Glenn Edward 'Happy' Tidwell 1929–2001
●Earl Allen Tidwell MSgt 1935–2004

Erlyne’s mother intended to give her children names with initials that spelled a word. Neal=net; Mary=met; Erlyne=et (the French word 'et' means 'and' in English; but when she married, her initials became ETA for estimated time of arrival—appropriate since her husband was in the Air Force); Robert=rat; Glenn=get; and Earl=eat. Somehow Lois’ name didn’t spell a word—LAT.

Erlyne’s father who worked as a railroad switchman for the Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway, died of a pulmonary embolism at age 49 in 1935 when Erlyne was 15. Her youngest brother was only 11 months old. She attended South Side High School in Memphis where she was a member of the National Honor Society.

In 1941, at the age of 21, she married John Logan Allen, and she enjoyed her life as the wife of an Air Force officer and mother of four daughters. She somehow learned to carry on with a positive attitude by trusting in God even though her husband’s military career meant that he was sometimes away on long assignments elsewhere. And she endured those terrible years early in their marriage when he was taken as a Prisoner of War in Germany after his plane was shot down during World War II. Their military career took them many places across the U.S. as well as Panama. Erlyne enjoyed their travels, making new friends and being active in the local Southern Baptist church wherever they were stationed.

Erlyne maintained her Southern charm throughout her life. God blessed her with the gift of hospitality, and she loved to invite guests to their home for meals, especially after Sunday worship service. Each meal included many courses and was served at a beautifully set table. She was always busy serving and attending to everyone else and rarely sat to eat with her guests but preferred dishing up more helpings of food to everyone around the large family table. It was a rare person who could eat enough to please her.

The family moved to Ellensburg in 1970 where they bought their final earthly home. She and youngest daughter, Laura, went with John for his final military assignment in Nevada while newly wed daughter, Beverly and husband lived in the Ellensburg home. Erlyne returned to Ellensburg where she resided until her death at age 90 on 21 Jul 2011, in Yakima, Yakima County, Washington. Just 9 months prior to her death, her children and grandchildren organized a wonderful 90th birthday surprise party for her. She was healthy then and able to thoroughly enjoy every moment of the special event. Some of her close friends even came to celebrate with her from out of town as well as outside Washington State.

Her earthly remains are buried next to her husband at High Valley Memorial in Ellensburg, Washington. Besides her husband, Erlyne was preceded in death by her parents and her six siblings. She is survived by her four daughters and their families—Carolyn, Lorraine, Beverly, and Laura. Morning memorial services were held on Tuesday, 26 Jul 2011, at Steward & Williams Tribute Center in Ellensburg.

Because Erlyne knows Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior, her family and her many Christian friends look forward to One Day rejoicing together again with her in Heaven.