Martha Louise Spoor ’91

Martha Louise Spoor ’91 died peacefully at home on May 6 following a five-year battle against breast cancer. She was only 39 years old and had so much more living to do and many more lives to touch. Martha was born on Apr. 11, 1969, in San Antonio, Tex. She attended Davidson and earned a bachelor of arts degree in English, magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, with the Class of 1992. Following graduation, she returned to San Antonio and received her master of arts degree in teaching from Trinity University in 1994. Martha’s greatest passion was teaching, and for almost 14 years she fulfilled her long-held dream as an English teacher at her beloved Alamo Heights Junior School. Above all others, her favorite assignment was to teach sixth grade pre-AP/gifted and talented English students, inspiring and encouraging them, especially in their writing skills. She loved her students as if they were her own children and always believed in their abilities to do better work than they thought they could. Martha was determined to teach as long as she was physically able, deriving strength from her precious students. She enjoyed the sense of family created by her colleagues, the students, and their parents and thrived on being a part of it. The most painful and courageous decision of her life was to retire from the classroom because she could no longer fulfill her own high expectations. She enjoyed physical activity, especially working out at the gym and playing ping pong, but also had fun watching sporting events on TV. She loved to bake, play Trivial Pursuit, and listen to an eclectic variety of music on her iPod. She is survived by her parents, David and Louise “Tookie” Parrish Spoor, 7603 Vinewood Ct., San Antonio, TX 78209; brother, Stephen (Jodi) and daughters, Emma and Eileen; sister Susan; uncles and aunts, Jack and Patty Parrish Hurt and Dan and Janice Bourdon Spoor; godparents, Dan and Molly Webster and the Honorable Sam Sparks; and numerous cousins. She is also survived by her beloved kitties, Cinnamon and Callie. She was preceded in death by her grandparents, Harry and Mildred Merrill Spoor and Ray and Etna “Grannie” Stolz Parrish; aunt, Patricia Spoor Carroll; cousins, Leslie Anne Spoor and Zachary Owen Bueker; and other godmother, Arden Reed.