April 18 1924 January 31 2023 98 Years Old
Life Story Claudie Maxine Steele King, 98, passed away January 31, 2022, in Marshall, Texas. She was born on Good Friday, April 18, 1924, in Winkler, Texas, to Claude and Caroline Steele. Her parents were sharecropper farmers, so she and her younger sister, Francis, grew up on several different farms in the area – helping care for the animals and pick cotton, in addition to attending school. They walked to school and back and often did not have electricity or running water in the house. After graduating from Corsicana High School, Maxine joined the Civil Service to support the war effort – first building radios and then moving to Honolulu, Hawaii, where she worked in aircraft repair and maintenance. She met David W. King (who was in the Army Air Corps) at Olivet Baptist Church, in Honolulu, where they both attended and served in outreach – and where they were married on Mother’s Day, May 12, 1946. After the war, Maxine and David attended and received degrees from Howard Payne University. Their first child, David, was born during those years, and after a break for the birth, Maxine took extra classes so she could graduate at the same time as David. Maxine worked as a mother, teacher, and pastor’s wife while David completed seminary and took pastorates in Angus, Starr, and Keller, Texas. They then embarked on a 30-year missionary career with the Southern Baptist Mission Board, serving in the country of Lebanon. Two more children, Jonathan and Jeanne, joined the family during those years. Maxine served in a variety of roles in the mission, including as the librarian for the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary – but she was mostly known for her cooking and her gardening! Her fried chicken, homemade bread, and abundant bouquets of fresh flowers fortified and brightened many lives during their 30 years in Lebanon. Maxine and David were among the last Americans to leave Beirut during the Lebanese civil war. Following retirement, they returned to Texas, where Maxine and David continued to serve for another 30 years in many different settings, especially at First Baptist Church in Marshall. They mentored students, led Bible studies, delivered meals, visited nursing homes, prayed, and touched many lives in their community and around the world. Maxine and David were married for 76 years before David passed away, and Maxine followed him four months later. Maxine is survived by son David King, Jr. and wife Sherry of Granbury, TX; son Jonathan King and wife LoiBeth of Taiwan; daughter Jeanne Yates and husband Russell of Avinger, TX; grandchildren Christopher King and wife Amanda, Stephen King and wife Andrea, James Mayfield and wife Megan, Nathan King, Andrew King, and Christina King; great grandchildren Aidan, Morgan, and Mackenzie; nephew John Lewis and wife Paulette; niece Layne Ragsdale and husband Loren; and brother-in-law C. Lawrence King, MD and wife Karen. Maxine is preceded in death by her parents, her sister Francis, and her husband David. A celebration of Mrs. King’s life will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 11, 2023, at the Worship Center of First Baptist Church, Marshall, TX, with Dr. Ryan Berryhill officiating. Flowers may be sent to the church, or memorials may be made to the First Baptist Church Missions Fund. Read More
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Claudie Maxine King April 18 1924 January 31 2023 98 Years Old.
Death notice for the town of: Longview, state: Texas