Alta Marie Payne, 104, of Colorado Springs, passed away on April 14, 2016.
Alta was born on January 31, 1912 in Alton, Illinois; the only child of Margaret and Oran Jackson. The family moved to Denver when she was a child and then to La Junta where her father ran a successful store. Alta attended Colorado Women’s College in Denver and graduated from Colorado State University in Fort Collins with a degree in home economics in 1935. She was a member of Delta Delta Delta Sorority.
Alta taught in Florence, Colorado, where she met photojournalist Stanley Payne. His career took him to Poncha City, Oklahoma and they were married on June 13, 1937. In January 1948, they arrived in Colorado Springs where Stan began a 20-year career with the Gazette Telegraph.
Alta’s mother taught her how to sew and she was known as a fine seamstress. Her patchwork quilts are treasured heirlooms. The Paynes joined First Presbyterian Church before joining Mesa Hills Bible Church. Stan passed away on November 27, 1983.
Alta is survived by her second cousins: Diane Wallace Ronayne (Gary Richardson) of Boise, Idaho and Debra Wallace McFerren (Bill) of Oakland, California. Trish and Jim Allen of Allen, Texas have been her Colorado Springs “kids” for the past 24 years and had helped take care of her for the past ten.
Alta was a God-fearing Christian woman who until very recently was able to “lift her eyes unto the hills” and exclaim about the beauty of snow-capped Pikes Peak. She will be missed.
Visitation will be held on Wednesday, April 20, 2016 from 9:00-10:00 a.m. at the Shrine of Remembrance Funeral Home, 1730 East Fountain Boulevard, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80910. A funeral service will follow at 10:00 a.m.