Cynthia Lee Walker

Cynthia Lee (Browning) Walker was born January 24, 1949 at St Elizabeth's hospital in Chicago Illinois. A few years later her parents Earl Leroy Browning, and Clara (Bosley) Browning moved the family to Texas. Cynthia grew up in Simonton Texas with her younger sisters Sandra and Barbra. Growing up Cynthia enjoyed ballet, horseback riding, and fishing. In high school she was a National Merit Scholar. Cynthia began her college education at Baylor University where she studied computer programming and had a student Job training the game bears. Throughout her life she would tell stories about her time working with bears. She completed her nursing degree at El Centro College in Dallas Texas and went on to work in several hospitals including labor and delivery at Parkland Hospital, where she helped bring many babies into the world and Terrell State, where she fought to improve the living conditions for mental patients. In 1975 Cynthia met James Kevin Walker and they were married on September 2nd 1976. In the late 70s Cynthia and Kevin volunteered at "The Family Place" a shelter for abused women and children in Dallas. On August 21st 1979 Cynthia and Kevin had their first son, James Vincent Walker, and in 1980 the family moved to San Antonio. Cynthia lost an unborn child after an auto accident, and on September 9th 1986 her second son Nicholas Earl Walker was born. In the early 80s Cynthia taught dance classes at a ballet school. Cynthia devoted most of her time to her children, volunteering at schools and teaching after school classes and activates. She taught computer classes to young children at a time when few families had computers in their homes, she taught arts and crafts such as paper making, and she always made sure that learning and fun went together. In the late 80s and 90s Cynthia worked with disabled children in a private practice with a group of therapists. Many of the kids Cynthia worked with had severe neurological and or learning deficits, through skill and perseverance she was able to help several of them archive more than they would otherwise have been able. In her work with children she advocated for what they needed in schools, one day she would be in and ARD fighting with a school to give a certain child the help they needed and the next she would be teaching In service classes for Special Ed teachers at region 20. During some of these years Cynthia volunteered with and served on the board of "Harbor House" a children's shelter which cared for special needs children. In her later years Cynthia worked with her older Son James in a portrait photography business. She enjoyed cooking, ice skating, watching old movies, and watching nature. Cynthia faced challenges and adversity through most of her life yet she never gave up on anything she set her mind to. On February 13th 2014, the day before Valentine's Day, Cynthia was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. Her doctors immediately started her on treatments but from the beginning they told her it was unlikely that she had 6 months to live. Cynthia responded well to her treatments and fought the cancer every step of the way for 2 years 1 month and 11 days. During those last two years she stayed as active as she was able. Up until the last few weeks Cynthia would sit in her chair every day watching birds and squirrels in the yard, she especially loved watching the humming birds that would come to a feeder she kept just outside the back door. Every year at Christmas Cynthia wanted a small tree decorated early and she would want to keep it up until well after the New Year. When the weather was warm she enjoyed going outside to see the flowers in the yard. Cynthia and Kevin were looking forward to celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary later this year. On Thursday, March 24, 2016 at 9:20 pm, with her two sons and her husband around her bedside Cynthia passed away. In her last hours she was able to hear from both her sisters and her mother. At the end she peacefully knew that her family was with her and that she was loved. There will be a visitation and funeral service to celebrate Cynthia's life Friday, April 1, 2016 at 1:00 PM at Allen Family Funeral Options, Plano, Texas. Cynthia will be laid to rest at Plano Mutual Cemetery following the service.