Ora Lee Binkley's Obituary
Ms. Ora Lee Binkley, born January 28, 1915 to Rev. R. N. and Mary Binkley in Detroit, Texas. She died August 1, 2019, believing in the assurance of an everlasting life she accepted when she was a little girl growing up on a farm in Lucas, Texas.Her sisters, Velma Binkley, Lavonia Martin, and Lela Barnes and her great-great-nephew Christopher Barnes preceded her in death. She is survived by her nephews, Dr. James Binkley Barnes, wife Jeanie and their son Alan Barnes; his wife, Diana and their children, Emily, Gabriel, and Benjamin; and Dr. Ben Lee Martin, wife Weslynn, their daughter, Heather Novak, her husband Kent, their children Travis and Jack; their son Matthew Martin, his wife Capriccio, their children Milo and Brody; and Dorothy Furr, Ora Lee’s last surviving first cousin out of 19.Ora Lee’s father was a Baptist minister who pastored country congregations. He died when she was 10 months old, leaving her visually impaired mother and her three sisters without means of support. She and her family moved into the home of her uncle, Irby Heifner, and into a large extended family. Despite destitution during the time of the Great Depression, Ora Lee and two of her sisters, Lela and Lavonia, took turns attending college for a year, teaching for a year, and supporting each other until all three received their degrees from North Texas State Teacher’s College (now the University of North Texas) in Denton. Her first teaching job during her college years was in the community of Wetsell, where she was the last teacher in Collin County to teach in a one-room schoolhouse. She later taught in Allen, Garland, and Dallas at San Jacinto and Hotchkiss. She was the penultimate first-grade teacher, starting hundreds of 6-year olds with a proper and disciplined educational experience. Since 1948 Ora Lee’s church home was Gaston Avenue Baptist Church, later Gaston Oaks Baptist Church. She spent her life in service to her family, her students, and her church. She was loved by many and will be greatly missed.Services for Ms. Ora Lee Binkley will be held Monday, August 5, 2019 at 11:00 AM at Restland Funeral Home which is located at 13005 Greenville Ave., Dallas, Texas 75243.Funeral arrangements for Ms. Ora Lee Binkley have been faithfully entrusted to Restland Funeral Home and Cemetery, which is located at 13005 Greenville Ave., at the intersection of Restland Road, Dallas, Texas 75243, and can be reached at (972) 238-7111.
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