Marty Walker
Join us in celebrating Marty—please share your stories and photos, and help spread the word about this page!
After struggling with Parkinson's Disease, Martha Ann "Marty" Huddleston Walker peacefully passed away on February 5, 2020 surrounded by her family. She was born on February 22, 1941 to Grace and Farris Huddleston in Paris, Texas. At 16, Marty met Michael Walker, whom she later married on March 30, 1961. Their family grew to include two children, Melanie and Mark; one daughter-in-law, Wendy; and three grandchildren, Jordan, Trevor and Abby.
After graduating from Paris High School in 1959, where she was a cheerleader and Homecoming Queen, she earned her B.S. and M.S. degrees from East Texas State University. She also completed post-graduate work at SMU, UT, and Univ of Dallas. Marty taught high school English from 1972-2013.
She taught at Greenville High School and at Samuell, Spruce and W.T. White High Schools in DISD. Her excellence in teaching was recognized and honored numerous times by DISD, the city, state, UT, Oxford University in England and other organizations. In 1995, Marty was selected as Dallas' Golden Apple Teacher of the Year, representing nearly 9,000 teachers in the district. She was widely known in the Dallas area for her letters to the editor in the Dallas Morning News' usually writing as an advocate for teachers and public education issues.
Though she loved to teach literature in her classroom, she frequently taught in church classes and retreat settings very effectively. During her husband's 40 years as a pastor, Marty thoroughly enjoyed being a pastor's wife, and was widely loved by their churches. She had a remarkable gift for making others feel truly valued and welcome.
Marty was a devoted wife, mother and grandmother where she spread love very generously and took great delight in each of them. She is survived by her husband, children, grandchildren, brother- and sisters-in-law, cousins, nieces and nephews.
A Memorial Service will be held for Marty at 1:00 pm on Saturday, February 22, 2020 at Tyler Street Church, 927 W. Tenth, Dallas, Texas 75208. A reception at the church will follow. Burial will be at Evergreen Cemetery in Paris, Texas at 2:00 pm on Friday, February 21, 2020. Memorial gifts may be made in Marty's honor to Tyler Street Church. Thanks be to God for His gift of Marty Walker.