Phaona Mae Atchley's Obituary
Phaona Mae Adamson Atchley was born on April 15, 1929, in Odessa, MO and passed into heaven on February 28, 2023, in Dallas, TX. Her parents were farmers Clyde Allen & Lillie Belle Adamson. She had four siblings: Frank, Josephine, Delbert and Lawrence. Phaona graduated from Research Hospital in Kansas City as a Registered Nurse, the first of her family to attend college. She married John Quinn Atchley of Blue Springs in 1952, a KU engineering student. The couple had two daughters, Dana and Jane. The family settled in Dallas in 1960 and were charter members of Arapaho UMC. They enjoyed a blissful 58 years together before his passing.
In Dallas, she worked at multiple hospitals, including Richardson General, Presbyterian, and Parkland. In 1977 she got an MS in Psychology / Human Development at UTD and taught Nursing at El Centro and TWU. Phaona was outgoing, nurturing, funny and frugal. She cooked every meal for the family with care. She loved to grow flowers and kept a beautiful yard. The Atchleys also bought a farm in Hunt County which they enjoyed for 40 years. She loved to sew, always had a knitting project going, and was a Dallas Hand Knitters Guild member. She had many best friends and neighbors and cherished each close relationship throughout her life. Phaona was a leader and "Mother Hen" of her Prestonwood neighborhood and volunteered at the Network of Community Ministries.
Phaona is survived by daughters Dana Atchley Hall, and Jane Claire Atchley Butler, grandchildren Jenalyn Deja Hall, Lillie Mae Butler and John Rhett Butler, son-in-law Carl Edward Butler, and many nieces and nephews from her Adamson family. Son-in-law Rex Alan Hall and her siblings preceded her.
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