AUDIE FAYE DEMPSEY FALK, 81, passed away May 2,
2021, with her husband by her side, with burial
in Bullock Cemetery near Ranger, TX.
Audie Faye Falk was born on Jan. 12, 1940 in a
farm house near Ranger, TX on a very cold, snowy
day to the late Ernest & Maggie Dempsey. The home
was small, but she said it was filled with love.
She & her two older sisters Hazel & Joyce bonded
for a lifetime of friendship on this small isolated
farm. She spent her childhood years in and around
Ranger & graduated from Ranger High School in 1958.
After she graduated from high school, she married
her high school sweetheart Ray Falk (RHS-1955) in
June of 1958. They lived that summer in Ranger
with Ray working for Gulf Pipeline and she sewing
in a garment factory. In the fall, she & Ray moved
to Austin, TX so he could complete his studies at
The University of TX Pharmacy School. While living
in Austin, she was employed as an administrative
assistant by The Texas Department of Highways. They
enjoyed attending U.T. football games and visiting
the many local museums.
After Ray graduated from U.T. they lived for three
months in Brownwood, TX. In the fall of 1960, they
moved to Abilene, TX, Ray working for Templeton
Kimbrough Pharmacies. In Abilene, both of their
children were born Kevin in 1961 and Debra in 1963.
In 1965 they moved to San Angelo, TX, Ray working
for Merck, a pharmaceutical company. Faye was active
in church and raising two children. Often Ray was
traveling with his job and was out of town.
In 1970, the family moved to Clyde, TX where they
had purchased BBB Drug Store and renamed it Falk
Pharmacy. She was part-time bookkeeper in the
business and also, full-time mother to two young
children. While living in Clyde, they bought and
refurbished a two-story house. This is the home
where Kevin & Debra were raised through high school.
In the mid-eighties they purchased 8 acres of land
that had been an abandoned pecan orchard. Several
months of work occupied both Audie Faye and Ray
improving the acreage. In 1988, they built a
Spanish-style mission house in the middle of the
acreage. This was to be their "retirement" home.
Purchasing a tractor, farm implements, and even
having a barn built occupied their time as they
planted and irrigated even more pecan, fruit, and
pine trees on their small farm.
In 2004, changes were made, as they sold their
business and purchased a motor home. For two
years, they traveled living in the motor home,
returning back to the farm in between trips. In
2006 they decided traveling was more fun than
farming. They sold the house, property, furniture,
farming equipment and became "full-timers" living
and traveling in the motor home. These years they
may have been houseless, but never homeless as
they explored North America.
Of all the houses they owned throughout their lives,
Audie Faye never needed to use a real estate agent,
but was able to exhibit her decorating talents as
she showed and sold them herself. During 2006
through 2013 they traveled as "full-timers" to
every state in the U.S. and Canada. Audie Faye
said that these were some of the happiest years
in her life.
In 2013 due to her health declining, they sold the
motor home and built a new house in Georgetown, TX.
She & Ray enjoyed life here, joining and attending
Hope United Church, a small church. Daniel their
grandson graduated from college in 2016, married
Adriana in 2018 and in June 2020 they welcomed a
beautiful baby boy, Evaric Johnson. Audie Faye
became a very happy great-grandmother.
Audie Faye is survived by Ray Falk her husband of
almost 63 years, her son Kevin Falk & spouse Allan
of Kauai, HI, her daughter Debra Johnson and spouse
Kent of Clyde, TX, her grandson Daniel Johnson and
spouse Adriana and great-grandson Evaric Johnson of
Houston, TX, her sister Joyce Dempsey Browning (RHS-
1954) of Stephenville, TX, and many nieces, nephews,
and cousins. Her sister Hazel Dempsey Sharpe (RHS-
1945 died in 2015.
Audie Faye fought a long battle against a rare disease
and showed her family and friends the true meaning of
grace, bravery and fortitude in the face of adversity.