Shirley Christine (Bruce) Hawes, 96, passed away Thursday, May 22, 2025, at Shepherd of the Hills Living Center in Branson, Missouri. She was born October 24, 1928, at St. Mary's Hospital in Jefferson City, Missouri, to Maude MacLeod and Dr. James Garfield Bruce, a physician and surgeon at St. Mary's. An avid Girl Scout, she, along with her many school friends, frequented Camp Pin Oak every summer of her girlhood, eventually becoming camp counselor "Pixie." She graduated from Jefferson City High School in 1946 and attended Gulf Park College for Women in Gulfport, Mississippi. Shirley returned to Missouri after becoming ill with spinal meningitis and upon recovery earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Education (with a minor in French and an emphasis in English) from the University of Missouri in Columbia. She met her husband of 63 years, Perry W. Hawes, Jr., at Mizzou following his Navy service in WWII; they married on November 10, 1951. Fun fact: Perry and Shirley had grown up a block away from one another but didn't meet until college.

Shirley enjoyed a brief career as an educator before becoming a stay-at-home mom of three, and she later returned to teaching for many years. Throughout her life, she modeled service to the community for her children and others, serving as a Boy Scout den mother and Girl Scout leader, delivering Meals on Wheels for the Red Cross, serving as a member and eventually president of St. Mary's Hospital Auxiliary, and volunteering with St. Ann's Sodality at Immaculate Conception parish in Jefferson City. She was active for most of her life with her college sorority, Kappa Alpha Theta, and she was a member of Chapter FS of the PEO Sisterhood for 77 years. Shirley loved to play cards and was a member of many bridge groups in her long life. She swung a mean ping pong paddle, and she loved to read, always keeping a book on her side table. She was witty and funny, bright and knowledgeable, and we will carry her forever in our hearts.

Shirley was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, and her sister, Nancy Lou Janzen. She is survived by her three children, Perry W. Hawes IV, Christine Hawes, and Margaret (James Y.) Davis.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: SSM Health St. Mary's Foundation - Jefferson City: 2505 Mission Drive, Health Plaza Suite 350, Jefferson City, Missouri 65109. https://www.givetossmhealth.org/foundations/missouri/st-marys-foundation-jefferson-city/make-a-gift

A visitation will be held at Stumpff Funeral Home, Kimberling City, MO on Sunday, June 1, 2025 from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m..

A memorial Mass will take place on Monday, June 2, 2025 at 10:30 a.m. at Our Lady of the Cove Catholic Church, Kimberling City, MO, preceded by the praying of the Rosary at 10:00. A reception will be held at the parish hall immediately following the Mass.

A visitation in Jefferson City will be held at Houser-Millard Family Chapel from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 4, 2025 followed by inurnment on Thursday at Resurrection Cemetery in Jefferson City.