Martha Jo Corble Bowles was born on March 20, 1935. She entered Heaven’s gates April 25, 2022. Visitation will be Thursday, April 28, from 2:00 – 3:30 p.m. at Woodward Avenue Baptist Church. The funeral service will immediately follow at the church with Greg Corble and Royce Massey officiating. Interment will be in Colbert Memorial Gardens.
Martha was a beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and most importantly, a great friend to everyone that she encountered.
Martha started her career at the Sheffield Hotel in the late 50s. Her husband Roy was away in the military when her first born son, Chuck, was born. Martha tells the story that Roy was wired that they had a baby, but it was weeks later before he learned it was a son.
Martha obtained a degree from Lairmore Business College and went on to have a long, thirty-seven-year career with the Muscle Shoals Board of Education. In fact, she was only the second employee hired when the city formed the new school system. She began the job as an administrative assistant and moved on to become the first CSFO for the Muscle Shoals School System. Her signature was on all employee’s checks until they went to the electronic method of checking. She was loyal and dedicated to the City of Muscle Shoals. The BOE office was originally housed in the City Hall, so Martha had many lifelong friends in the city of Muscle Shoals. Martha not only worked but lived in the city of Muscle Shoals all of her life.
She retired from the school system in 1994 and continued with her world travels. Not many First Metro Friends’ buses left that Martha and Teeny Stratford were not boarded. Martha, Teeny and many of their close friends traveled the world, places such as Alaska, Nova Scotia, Russia, Paris, Switzerland, Thailand, and China, just to name a few. There were many amazing and hilarious stories that accompanied most of these trips. Martha also visited as many states as she possibly could visit. Her favorite trip after retirement was to spend the month of February at the beach. Her toes never touched the sand, but she loved to sit on the balcony and watch her family and friends have fun in the sand.
Martha was an avid bridge player. She played bridge and other card games most of her life, including in the latter years. Her family loved to get together on weekends and play a good card game or dominoes.
Martha was a generous person. She insisted on always paying it forward. Martha was a giver, and for that, she will always be remembered….and wanted to be remembered that way.
Martha was preceded in death by her first husband, and the father to Chuck and Barbara, Roy Lee Corble. She also was preceded by her second husband, Doug Bowles. She lost her oldest son, Chuck Corble, in 1993. She is preceded in death by her parents, Clyde and Edith Whitlock. She was also preceded in death by her son-in-law, Doug Pounders.
She is survived by her only child, Barbara Corble Pounders; and her grandchildren, Valerie Maxwell Letson, Elizabeth Pounders Fuller, Christy Corble Waters, Bo Corble, and Brooke Corble Garner. She is survived by stepdaughters, Amanda Bowles Smith, and Amelia Wilkins. She is survived by her great-grandchildren, Karli Jo Maxwell, Kara Letson, Emmie Beth Waters, Braxton Garner, Kelsey Garner, and Kate Corble.
Donations can be made to the Muscle Shoals Education Foundation, the Muscle Shoals Library, or any charity of choice.
