SAVANNAH, Ga. -- Alice Jo Lane Giddens, 98, died December 27th, 2020, at Harmony at Savannah.
Alice Jo was a spirited Southern belle with boundless energy and creativity who influenced the lives of all around her. She was known for her heartfelt prayers, her eloquent letters and her generosity to others less fortunate.
Alice Jo Lane grew up on a farm in Bulloch County with her parents, Mary and Emory Lane; her brother, Jones Lane; and her sister, Betty Lane.
She was a child of the Depression, and she learned how to stretch a dollar, create a meal from scraps, sew her own clothes and fashion toys with whatever materials were available on the farm.
She attended Georgia Teachers College (now Georgia Southern University) and taught at Middleground School. She later trained as an X-ray technician at the Medical College of Georgia before being offered a job with Dr. John Ethridge in Valdosta, Georgia, which became her home until her recent move to Savannah two months ago.
With four young children to care and provide for, Mrs. Giddens needed to work at home, so she left health care and converted her carport into Alice in Wonderland Kindergarten, where she influenced the lives of Valdosta students for 35 years.
She loved her work. The last weeks of her life she said she’d still be teaching if she could. Her students were taught to color every bit of white space on the paper, to sing and recite poetry and to read using phonics. For many years, the seniors of Valdosta High School, who had attended her kindergarten, posed for a yearbook photo on the front steps of her home at 903 Gornto Road.
Mrs. Giddens’ influence was also felt at Park Avenue United Methodist Church, where she was a charter member. She served as superintendent of elementary Sunday school, sang in the church choir, taught the Param Sunday School Adult Class and sang with a group called the Keen-agers, who ministered particularly to nursing homes.
For more than 20 years, she and a small group of volunteers cooked monthly for more than 100 older adults in the Valdosta area. For $3, she fed them a variety of Southern delicacies, such as country fried steak, broccoli and squash casseroles, ham and macaroni and cheese, and hot chicken salad, as well as bread and dessert.
Each year, she contributed dozens of cans of peanut brittle to the church bazaar held by the women of Park Avenue, with patrons lining up to get a can of her famous confection.
Mrs. Giddens also performed many acts of quiet kindness, providing rides to older adults so they could attend church services, and preparing and delivering her signature spaghetti sauce and fixings for anyone in need of a lift.
But her greatest influence was on her children, who she taught to honor commitments, work hard, persevere in the face of obstacles and be thrifty. She was a hard task-master, expecting only the best from her offspring, leading them to aspire to bigger things. She taught them to believe in the importance of faith and prayer.
Mrs. Giddens was an excellent cook who prepared outstanding family meals. She delighted her grandchildren with enormous, crisp sugar cookies, Granny’s chocolate cake for birthdays and sourdough bread made from a starter that was 40 years old. At 94, she was still baking bread every Saturday, and it was a treat to be at her house around 4 when the hot loaves came from the oven, ready to be sliced and slathered with soft butter. Many of her recipes appear in her daughter’s cookbooks.
Mrs. Giddens particularly loved live theatre, attending all of the plays in which her daughter performed at the summer theatre at Isle of Hope United Methodist Church. She also went to many performances with the Park Avenue older adults held at Alhambra Theatre and Dining in Jacksonville. For her 70th birthday, Alice Jo and her daughter went to New York for a weekend of Broadway, where they saw "Miss Saigon" and "The Phantom of the Opera." Car trips were often spent listening to the soundtracks of "Sound of Music," "Les Miserables" and "Fiddler on the Roof."
In retirement, she was able to travel to England for the John Wesley tour and to Israel with her son as tour organizer.
Mrs. Giddens spoke her mind, using her rich vocabulary and hundreds of witty sayings, often telling her children to “put that in your pipe and smoke it” when revealing some unpleasant truth that needed to be mulled over, and describing people as “thin as a rail,” “fat as a pig” or “long in the tooth.”
She is preceded in death by her beloved son, John Thomas Giddens; parents, Emory and Mary Lane; brother, Jones Lane; sister-in-law, Sue Lane; and niece, Gloria Lane.
She is survived by her three children, the Rev. James Wilson Giddens Jr. (Linda) of Savannah, Emory Lane Giddens (Sheryl) of Valdosta and Martha Alice Giddens Nesbit (Gary) of Savannah. She was blessed with 11 grandchildren, Jim, Kyle, Chris, April, John, Sally, Taylor, Jamie, Thomas, Zack and Emory; as well as 19 great-grandchildren. She is also survived by nephews, Billy and Bob Lane of Statesboro; and a special niece, Mary Ann Lane Robertson of Fripp Island, S.C.
Mrs. Giddens was able to remain in her beloved home in Valdosta until she was 96, thanks to the loving care of her son, Lane. The family is grateful to the staff at Fellowship Home in Valdosta for the care they provided to her for two years before her move to Savannah in October. The compassionate staff at Harmony and the services of Hospice Savannah nurses provided comfort to her during a short decline.
Donations may be made to Park Avenue United Methodist Church Food Pantry Fund, 100 East Park Avenue, Valdosta, Georgia, 31602; or a charity of your choice.
Private graveside services coordinated by Fox and Weeks of Savannah will be held in Statesboro at Eastside Cemetery. Her son, the Rev. Jim Giddens, will officiate.
Mrs. Giddens was a woman of great faith, who had posted on her refrigerator for many years, “Lord, what would you have me do today?” She particularly loved this Scripture from Isaiah 40, “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Amen.
Due to COVID restrictions, the family will not have a visitation. A private family graveside service will be held in Statesboro.
Please sign our online guestbook at www.foxandweeks.com.
Fox & Weeks Funeral Directors, Savannah, GA, (912) 352-7200.
Statesboro Herald, December 29, 2020
Sign the Legacy online guestbook at www.statesboroherald.com.
Alice Jo was a spirited Southern belle with boundless energy and creativity who influenced the lives of all around her. She was known for her heartfelt prayers, her eloquent letters and her generosity to others less fortunate.
Alice Jo Lane grew up on a farm in Bulloch County with her parents, Mary and Emory Lane; her brother, Jones Lane; and her sister, Betty Lane.
She was a child of the Depression, and she learned how to stretch a dollar, create a meal from scraps, sew her own clothes and fashion toys with whatever materials were available on the farm.
She attended Georgia Teachers College (now Georgia Southern University) and taught at Middleground School. She later trained as an X-ray technician at the Medical College of Georgia before being offered a job with Dr. John Ethridge in Valdosta, Georgia, which became her home until her recent move to Savannah two months ago.
With four young children to care and provide for, Mrs. Giddens needed to work at home, so she left health care and converted her carport into Alice in Wonderland Kindergarten, where she influenced the lives of Valdosta students for 35 years.
She loved her work. The last weeks of her life she said she’d still be teaching if she could. Her students were taught to color every bit of white space on the paper, to sing and recite poetry and to read using phonics. For many years, the seniors of Valdosta High School, who had attended her kindergarten, posed for a yearbook photo on the front steps of her home at 903 Gornto Road.
Mrs. Giddens’ influence was also felt at Park Avenue United Methodist Church, where she was a charter member. She served as superintendent of elementary Sunday school, sang in the church choir, taught the Param Sunday School Adult Class and sang with a group called the Keen-agers, who ministered particularly to nursing homes.
For more than 20 years, she and a small group of volunteers cooked monthly for more than 100 older adults in the Valdosta area. For $3, she fed them a variety of Southern delicacies, such as country fried steak, broccoli and squash casseroles, ham and macaroni and cheese, and hot chicken salad, as well as bread and dessert.
Each year, she contributed dozens of cans of peanut brittle to the church bazaar held by the women of Park Avenue, with patrons lining up to get a can of her famous confection.
Mrs. Giddens also performed many acts of quiet kindness, providing rides to older adults so they could attend church services, and preparing and delivering her signature spaghetti sauce and fixings for anyone in need of a lift.
But her greatest influence was on her children, who she taught to honor commitments, work hard, persevere in the face of obstacles and be thrifty. She was a hard task-master, expecting only the best from her offspring, leading them to aspire to bigger things. She taught them to believe in the importance of faith and prayer.
Mrs. Giddens was an excellent cook who prepared outstanding family meals. She delighted her grandchildren with enormous, crisp sugar cookies, Granny’s chocolate cake for birthdays and sourdough bread made from a starter that was 40 years old. At 94, she was still baking bread every Saturday, and it was a treat to be at her house around 4 when the hot loaves came from the oven, ready to be sliced and slathered with soft butter. Many of her recipes appear in her daughter’s cookbooks.
Mrs. Giddens particularly loved live theatre, attending all of the plays in which her daughter performed at the summer theatre at Isle of Hope United Methodist Church. She also went to many performances with the Park Avenue older adults held at Alhambra Theatre and Dining in Jacksonville. For her 70th birthday, Alice Jo and her daughter went to New York for a weekend of Broadway, where they saw "Miss Saigon" and "The Phantom of the Opera." Car trips were often spent listening to the soundtracks of "Sound of Music," "Les Miserables" and "Fiddler on the Roof."
In retirement, she was able to travel to England for the John Wesley tour and to Israel with her son as tour organizer.
Mrs. Giddens spoke her mind, using her rich vocabulary and hundreds of witty sayings, often telling her children to “put that in your pipe and smoke it” when revealing some unpleasant truth that needed to be mulled over, and describing people as “thin as a rail,” “fat as a pig” or “long in the tooth.”
She is preceded in death by her beloved son, John Thomas Giddens; parents, Emory and Mary Lane; brother, Jones Lane; sister-in-law, Sue Lane; and niece, Gloria Lane.
She is survived by her three children, the Rev. James Wilson Giddens Jr. (Linda) of Savannah, Emory Lane Giddens (Sheryl) of Valdosta and Martha Alice Giddens Nesbit (Gary) of Savannah. She was blessed with 11 grandchildren, Jim, Kyle, Chris, April, John, Sally, Taylor, Jamie, Thomas, Zack and Emory; as well as 19 great-grandchildren. She is also survived by nephews, Billy and Bob Lane of Statesboro; and a special niece, Mary Ann Lane Robertson of Fripp Island, S.C.
Mrs. Giddens was able to remain in her beloved home in Valdosta until she was 96, thanks to the loving care of her son, Lane. The family is grateful to the staff at Fellowship Home in Valdosta for the care they provided to her for two years before her move to Savannah in October. The compassionate staff at Harmony and the services of Hospice Savannah nurses provided comfort to her during a short decline.
Donations may be made to Park Avenue United Methodist Church Food Pantry Fund, 100 East Park Avenue, Valdosta, Georgia, 31602; or a charity of your choice.
Private graveside services coordinated by Fox and Weeks of Savannah will be held in Statesboro at Eastside Cemetery. Her son, the Rev. Jim Giddens, will officiate.
Mrs. Giddens was a woman of great faith, who had posted on her refrigerator for many years, “Lord, what would you have me do today?” She particularly loved this Scripture from Isaiah 40, “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Amen.
Due to COVID restrictions, the family will not have a visitation. A private family graveside service will be held in Statesboro.
Please sign our online guestbook at www.foxandweeks.com.
Fox & Weeks Funeral Directors, Savannah, GA, (912) 352-7200.
Statesboro Herald, December 29, 2020
Sign the Legacy online guestbook at www.statesboroherald.com.