Alice Love Slaton of Vero Beach, Florida passed away peacefully on May 13, 2022 while in the loving company of her family.

Alice Love was born to parents Earl and Maude Handley on November 10, 1920 in Huntington, WV. Alice, or "Lovey" as she was known to her friends, graduated from Shawnee High School and attended University of Louisville where she was a member of Sigma Kappa Sorority. There she met Walter Leslie Slater whom she married in 1940 and gave birth to Linda Love Slater (1941 – 1992). He was killed during WWII on the U.S.S. John Penn that was sunk by enemy action on August 13, 1943.

In 1951 she married John William Slaton and over 71 happy and loving years together, life took her from Louisville, Kentucky, where she grew up, to homes with John in Illinois, Ohio, Delaware, Missouri, New Jersey, and Ohio again before settling in Vero Beach, Florida and summering at their home in Mountain Glen in Newland, North Carolina after John's retirement.

Lovey was anything but boring. Always curious, she was a life-long learner. And while she was not overly adventurous, she was intrepid in her daily life. She was vivacious and loving. She loved to laugh and did so enthusiastically and often. She expressed her many opinions both passionately and often with humorous animation. She did not suffer fools gladly, and in private "simpleton" was a part of her regular vocabulary. Lovey was also very practical, and having grown up in the great depression she "knew the meaning of a dollar."

In addition to her husband and children, she also loved playing bridge and tennis with gusto; as well as golf; going dancing with "Johnny;" listening to classical music, standards, and NPR radio; and watching Masterpiece Theater, Turner Classic Movies, C-SPAN, and tennis matches on television. Lovey was also a voracious reader. Breakfast was with the Wall Street Journal every day and in her leisure, she enjoyed history, biographies, and autobiographies in particular. She also loved animals and the family had many pets over the years.

Lovey devoted much of her time to taking care of her family while the children were growing up. She was a home room mother, field trip chaperone, Brownie and Girl Scout leader, and taught Sunday school. She was also a one-woman, non-stop shuttle service, taking the kids to school and to various activities over the years. "Sleepovers" were common at the Slaton house, which had a reputation for being a fun place to be, with the mom that was up for cookie baking and other messy activities. She was something of a jack-of-all-trades and though not among her passions, she was a good cook, seamstress, crocheter, and occasional crafter.

When Lovey moved into nursing care, her daughters found a small scrap of paper in her dresser drawer where, in her lovely penmanship she had written the quote, "No one who is loved is ever lost. No one who has touched a life, who has brought beauty to the world is ever truly gone. Those we cherish will always live on in memory." Lovey will always be remembered, loved, and cherished.

Lovey was preceded in death by her brother, Samuel Earles Handley, and is survived by her husband, John William Slaton and two daughters, Melissa Jane Slaton and Carolyn Lee Neel and her husband, Daniel E. Neel, granddaughter Monica Denise Clay, and step- grandchildren Zachary James Neel, and Lacey Danielle Neel.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her honor to the Audubon Society, Doctors Without Borders, National Public Radio (NPR), or a charity of your choice.