Alice Stephens

Alice Stephens Obituary

Alice Wanke Stephens died peacefully at home February 22, 2018 with her children by her side. She was the matriarch of an extended family. Besides her three children and their families she was Aunt Alice and second mother to her sister Gere’s children. She also had a large number of friends here in Portland and across the United States.
Alice was born February 2, 1926 in Southeast Portland. She attended Grant High School, spent two years at Oregon State and graduated from Stanford in 1948. She returned to Portland and worked for the city recreation department and on local radio. She met her husband, Farrold Stephens, through their mutual love of music. They married at the First Unitarian Church in 1950 and then moved to New York. Her husband’s work took them across the country: Kentucky, Texas, California, and back to Kentucky. Upon returning to Portland in 1971, Alice began to focus on her painting career. She found inspiration in the landscapes of the Oregon Coast, Portland’s Forest Park, and Japanese Garden and spent much time exploring and painting the Columbia River Gorge. She was a featured Oregon artist on Oregon Public Broadcasting and had shows at the Forestry Center, the Portland Art Museum’s rental/sales gallery and other local galleries. She was particularly proud of her mother/daughter show with Lynn: Northwest/Northeast. A prolific artist, Alice produced over 400 paintings.
In addition to her painting, Alice continued her love of music through church and community choirs. She was extremely generous, donating a kidney to her sister, thereby extending her life for several years. She cherished the time she spent with her children and their families around the U.S. and especially their time all together every summer at Manzanita Beach. And she shared her love and joy of life with everyone she met. To say that Alice was an optimist would be a huge understatement. She found value everywhere and always “accentuated the positive.”
Alice is survived by her three children, Scott Stephens, Lynn Stephens Massey and Todd Stephens and their spouses; seven grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; four nieces; and a nephew. The family also expresses their deep appreciation for Alice’s caregivers, and for Legacy Hospice.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Friends of the Columbia Gorge.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m., Saturday, March 3, 2018, in the sanctuary of the First United Methodist Church, 1838 S.W. Jefferson, Portland, OR 97201, reception following.

Memorial Service

2:00 PM ,Saturday, March 3, 2018
First United Methodist Church
1838 S.W. Jefferson Portland, OR 97201

Services

You can still show your support by sending flowers directly to the family, or by planting a memorial tree in the memory of Alice Stephens

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One reply on “Alice Stephens”

To the family and friends,
I am very sorry to here of the lost of your loved one.
In the Bible at 2Corinthians 1:3,4 it says: ” Praised be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of tender mercies and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our trials so that we may be able to comfort others in any sort of trial with the comfort that we receive from God.”
God comforts us by his word the Bible.
In it he explains why we have sickness and death and how he will undue all the problems we see in the world today and bring our loved ones back to life. If you would like free Bible studies to bring you comfort, you may ask any one of Jehovah’s Witnesses to make arrangements.