Shirley Ann (Reifiess) Spooner passed away peacefully on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021, after a long battle with Alzheimer's. She was born in Detroit, Mich., on Nov. 19, 1933, to Mildred Bilson and Douglas Gurney. After her parents divorced, she moved to Florida with her mother and her stepfather, Louis Alex "Al" Reifiess who later adopted her and gave her his name. On Jan. 5, 1953, Shirley married Lavern Jackson Spooner in Brevard County, Fla.
Shirley will be remembered as a devoted wife, mother and grandmother who spent her entire life taking care of others. She was a strong and steady woman with an entrepreneurial spirit. She was a long-time resident of Branford, Fla. and started and ran several successful businesses there including her late husband's chiropractor clinic. She also started a rental business for divers, a hair salon and later a flower shop. Shirley loved spending time with her family and was known for her home cooking, gracious hospitality and incredible work ethic. She spent summers teaching her grandchildren the value of hard work and having fun. She spent holidays bringing the entire family together for poker nights and bonfires and, in her later years, helped care for her grandchildren and those who needed a mother's nurturing.
She was lovingly nicknamed 'Maude' by her family and friends for her enduring strength and firm belief that women were a fundamental part of the success of all families. She was a beautiful woman, inside and out, who held herself to a high standard and demonstrated that through her love and caring spirit. She is survived by her children: Linda Zack, Deborah Snell, Donald Spooner and Kenneth Spooner; 11 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren. To honor Shirley's memory, the family asks that in lieu of flowers a donation be made to the Sugarmill Manor at 8985 S. Suncoast Blvd, Homosassa, Fla. 34446, where Shirley was loved and taken care of for the last years of her life. Wilder Funeral Home, Homosassa, Fla.