Carrol Ann Hays

Carrol Ann Hays passed from this life, and into the loving arms of Jesus June 29, 2025. She was 77 years old. She was born November 7, 1947, in Elk City, Oklahoma to Melvin Hartsell Clancy & Drue Nell Clancy, and had one sister, Kay.  She grew up in Shamrock, Texas, and graduated from Shamrock High School, and would go on to attend what is now West Texas A&M, where she received her degree in education.  

Her teaching career lead her to stops at Mobeetie, Tx., Sunray, Tx, and included stops at schools in the DFW Metroplex, and in Kansas.  Providence lead her to Matador, Texas in the late 1970s, and it was here she was introduced by a woman in the church to my father.  They were married March 8, 1980, and to this union were born two children, Quinn, in 1982, and Courtney in 1984.  She taught English, Literature, and Theater Arts for some 25 years at Motley County, directed numerous one-act plays, and was UIL coordinator.  Many a student sat in her classroom, and as the years went by, the children of those students sat in her classroom. She loved teaching, and possessed a deep love for reading, especially mysteries and "Who-done-its".  Many trips were made to the library, and if the number of books she checked out could have been converted into frequent flyer miles, no doubt that a trip to the moon and back could have been made.

A cooking enthusiast, she tortured herself watching cooking shows such as The Pioneer Woman and America's Test Kitchen.  She watched nonstop  as they cooked up gourmet feasts, comfort and soul food and then, much to her own disdain, would resign herself to her Adkins bars and Glucerna. Still, mental notes were jotted down, recipes adjusted, and once the concoction met her approval, the masterpiece presented at special occasions and church potlucks.  It is a well known fact that she could never prepare just one or two dishes for church potlucks, and she proved that by consistently preparing enough dishes that would require a moving truck to transport.  She was well known for her tomato - avocado salad, potato salad, and cinnamon rolls, which were rolled out once a year at Christmas, and she always made sure to have the favorites for all who entered her house.

Christmas will never be the same without both, but especially her.

She loved music, and often times could be heard singing hymns to herself while she read or cooked. Ever the dedicated mother and grandmother, she attended choir concerts, and piano recitals and musicals of grandchildren.  A devout and dedicated Christian, she loved to worship, she loved the Lord, and she loved her church family.  While our hearts ache and break right now, they also rejoice that placed her life and trust in Jesus, and we that believe in the resurrected Christ have faith and comfort in knowing that her race is run, and her faith has become sight, and she is now and eternally embraced in the loving arms of her Savior.

We thank God for that.

After retirement in the early 2000s, she enjoyed playing the doting grandmother to her four grandchildren.  There was always time for hugs and cuddles, for play time, and dessert was an absolute necessity.  She loved her grandchildren dearly, and there is no doubt a special place in their hearts for her.  

In her final years, Father Time and the infirmities of old age began to close the gap, and it became harder and harder for her to get around, and to perform many of the tasks that seem so menial.  This frustrated her to no end as she loved being able to take care of those that she loved so deeply.  Heartbreaking as it was to see it unfold, one could not help but admire how she tried to keep an upbeat disposition through it all.  The last few years remind me of the song "Lead Me Home".

I have seen my last tomorrow.

I am holding my last breath.

Goodbye sweet world of sorrow.

My new life begins in death.

I am standing on the mountain.

I can hear the angel's song.

I am reaching over Jordan.

Take my hand, Lord, lead me home.

All my burdens are behind me.

I have prayed my final prayer.

Don't you cry over my body

because that's not me lying there.

I am standing on the mountain.

I can hear the angel's song.

I am reaching over Jordan.

Take my hand, Lord, lead me home.

She is reunited with her parents, and while we mourn her loss, we rejoice at that.

She is survived by her husband, Vaden Hays of Matador, Texas; a son, Quinn Hays of Lubbock, Texas; a daughter, Courtney Spencer of Lubbock, Texas; a sister, Kay Stancell, and her husband Danny of Levelland, four grandchildren, Brock, Olivia, Zoey, and Zander; and nieces Cheryl, Cynthia and Janet, and nephews Chris, Alan & Gary, and countless great nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be donated to the Westview Boys Home.