Martha Jane Keenum Sharp, 84, of Tuscumbia, passed away on Sunday, April 5, 2026. Visitation will be Saturday, April 11, from 1:00 – 2:30 p.m. at Morrison Funeral Home, Tuscumbia. A graveside service will follow at Colbert Memorial Gardens, Tuscumbia, beginning at 3:00 p.m. with Frank Mills and Mike Coston officiating.
Born in Tuscumbia, AL, and grew up in the neighborhood known as Sugar Hill. Jane attended Cave Street Elementary School and graduated from Deshler High School in the class of 1960.
After high school she attended and graduated as a registered nurse from Carraway Methodist Hospital School of Nursing in Birmingham, AL. She served as President of her Senior Class and was twice chosen runner up in the “Sweetheart of Carraway” competition. Jane was hired at Carraway Hospital immediately after graduating, where she was the charge RN in obstetrics. It was at Carraway that she met and later married Lt. Douglas Odell Sharp, who had previously worked as a student and pharmacist in the Carraway Hospital pharmacy.
Shortly after marriage, Jane joined her husband in Boston, MA where she worked in OB at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital that was located in the Brighton neighborhood of Boston. She often mentioned that she enjoyed working there more than anywhere else, even though the doctors and interns there would call her Miss Georgia or Miss North Carolina and encouraged her to speak more so they could hear her speak in her southern Alabama accent. After Boston she relocated to Columbia, TN where she was an OB nurse at Maury County Hospital.
Jane was an active member of Graymere Church of Christ and often attended Maury Christian Camp, serving as camp nurse. She taught children’s Bible classes and was involved in Vacation Bible School. She volunteered at Tennessee Orphan’s Home in Spring Hill, TN caring for the needs of the children there.
Jane was active in the Baker School PTA, having served as co-Chairman of the annual school’s Spaghetti Supper & Festival and volunteered as school nurse. She often volunteered as substitute teacher at Columbia Academy Christian School in its first year of existence.
After the family relocated to northwest Alabama Jane was employed as an RN at Shoals Hospital in Sheffield, AL. After retiring from nursing, she worked alongside her husband at the Medicine Shoppe Pharmacy in Sheffield until it closed at the end of 1999.
Jane was a member of Cross Point Church of Christ in Florence, AL where she served in the Friendship Center Ministry, working in the clothing department.
In retirement she enjoyed travelling to 35 different countries located in North & South America, Europe and Asia. In 2015 she relocated from Muscle Shoals to Tuscumbia, AL.
She was preceeded in death by her parents, Loyd Talmadge Keenum and Martha Adell Willingham Keenum; brother, Talmadge M. Keenum; and grandson, William Andrew Sharp.
Jane was known for her compassion and the Christian love that she shared with others. She touched the lives of so many people, but her greatest love was her family. Survivors include her husband of sixty-two years, Douglas Odell Sharp; sister, Patricia Barnett; sons, Doug (Myra) Sharp, Bryan (Brandi) Sharp and Tom (Jan) Sharp; grandson, Alexander Sharp; granddaughters, Ashlyn (James) Upshaw, Alaina Sharp, Emilee (Josh) Broschinski and Sheridan (Kerry) Welch; stepgrandsons, Blake Gentry, Patrick Gentry and Cale (Samantha) Frederick; great-grandchildren, Norah & Liam Upshaw and Elliott & Garrett Broschinski; step great-grandchildren, Rylan Gentry and Claire, Conner and Christopher Frederick; and a host of nieces, nephews, and cousins.
Pallbearers will be Chad Barnett, Eddie Sharp, James Upshaw, Nate Allen, Kerry Welch, and Josh Broschinski. The Deshler High School Class of 1960 will serve as honorary pallbearers.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Cross Point Church of Christ Friendship Center Ministry, 1350 Cox Creek Pkwy, Florence, AL 35633.
The family offers special thanks to the staff of Southern Care New Beacon Hospice, and to The Cornerstone caretakers.
