Martha Clayton Sparks Tisdale passed away peacefully on Friday, May 19, 2017, at St. Simeon’s Episcopal Home in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Martha Clayton was born in Monroe, Louisiana on September 8, 1933. She attended Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri, and graduated from Sophie Newcomb College, Tulane University, with a B.A. degree in History in 1955. She was a member of Chi Omega Sorority.
Martha Clayton married her childhood sweetheart, Alfred Dent Tisdale, Jr., M.D., also of Monroe, Louisiana, in 1956, and they settled in Pine Bluff, Arkansas in 1963 after Dent’s graduation from Tulane School of Medicine and residency in Shreveport, Louisiana. Martha Clayton was a homemaker in Pine Bluff, Arkansas where she raised her two children and supported Dent who practiced pathology. After 27 years in Pine Bluff, Martha Clayton and Dent moved back home to Monroe to be with family and friends. While in Monroe, Martha Clayton was a member of The National Society of Colonial Dames of America and the Monroe Garden Study League. Martha Clayton loved travel, and she and Dent spent many years traveling to Europe. Martha Clayton had a particular love for England where she had a unique opportunity to meet HRH Queen Elizabeth II.
Martha Clayton is predeceased by her husband, the late Alfred Dent Tisdale, Jr., M.D. and her parents, Mr. Robert Clayton Sparks and Albena Herring Sparks, all of Monroe. She is survived by her two children, Dr. Robert Clayton Tisdale of Austin, Texas, and Martha Tisdale Cordell of Tulsa, Oklahoma; and four grandchildren, David Ryan Cordell, Jr., Mary Louise Cordell, George Dent Tisdale, and Edward Sparks Tisdale. Martha will be greatly missed by all of her family, friends, and the many wonderful care-givers at St. Simeon’s.
A funeral mass will be celebrated for Martha Clayton at 10:00 A.M. Wednesday, May 24, 2017, at Jesus the Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Monroe, LA with Rev. Jim Moran officiating. Interment will follow at Mulhearn Memorial Park Cemetery, under the direction of Mulhearn Funeral Home, Sterlington Road, Monroe.
In lieu of flowers, please consider honoring Martha Clayton’s memory with a donation to St. Simeon’s Episcopal Home or to a charity of your choice.
Online Registry/Condolences: www.mulhearnfuneralhome.com
Mulhearn Funeral Home
Sterlington Road
Monroe, LA