Lisa Jean Prince

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.neptunesociety.com/location/nashville-cremation for the Prince family.

I, Stephen Prince, would like to introduce you to Lisa Jean Prince.  She was born in Sacramento, CA on November 6, 1953.  It saddens me to say she passed away on May 23, 2023.  Lisa’s mother was  Jean L. Fogle and father was Max S. Bullock.  She had one older sister, Ann. Lisa’s family eventually moved to Ohio where her father became a home contractor.  Years later, her mother divorced and moved to Baytown, TX with Lisa and her sister – trying to make ends meet.  Her mother eventually married her step father, Vernon Johnson. Lisa lived most of her childhood and young adult life in Baytown, Tx where she graduated from Robert E. Lee High School in 1971.  

Lisa worked in many different occupations during her life.  She worked as a Respiratory Therapy Technician at the Methodist Hospital.  She later took a job as a cook with Exxon Mobil Shipping.  She also worked for Halliburton Co. in the Document Control Department during the construction of the South Texas Nuclear Power Plant.

When I met Lisa in 1982, she was working part time at a quaint little pub  waiting tables.  She caught my eye and I said “Hi”.  We chatted awhile as she waited to pick up her order at the waitress stand.  She told me she had a 15-minute break coming up and asked me if I knew how to do the Texas 2 Step.  I never really caught on to the dance, but I knew she felt good in my arms. I worked for Exxon and our ship was leaving the next morning.  I was hoping to see her again, so I asked for her phone number.  Between tours of duty, we courted and fell in love.

On February 14, 1983, Lisa married me, Stephen L. Prince in St. Petersburg, FL at St. Marks Methodist Church. We lived in St. Petersburg, FL near my parents,  Walter Edward and Shirley Prince and my brother Edward. We have had a joyful, compassionate, heartfelt 40 years together at each other’s side.  

A few years later we moved from St. Petersburg to our new home in St. Augustine, FL.  We enjoyed the beach, sailing, camping and some traveling.  As I was still working with Exxon Mobil Shipping, I would be out to sea for 60 to 90 days at a time.  While I was away, Lisa worked at the Whetstone Chocolate Co., managing the beach inn and stores at the Old St. Augustine Restoration Area.  She also took up ceramics as a hobby and we adopted a wonderful cocker spaniel, Charlie. He definitely became part of the family and provided companionship for Lisa while I was at sea.

In March 1992, I applied for a transfer from shipping to the Exxon Mobil Refinery in Baytown, TX.  We sold our house in FL and moved to Baytown.  Lisa was happy to move back to Texas so she could reconnect with her family and friends.  At that time Lisa took a course in bookkeeping at Lee Community College.  We enjoyed what nearby Houston had to offer – dancing, concerts, dining and major league sports.  The move to Baytown also put us closer to her mother and stepfather – 4 hours away in Kerrville, Tx.  I worked at the refinery for several years, then retired in 2004.  Lisa said "she too was ready to retire as well", after years of waking up at 5 a.m. to see me off to work – always with a good breakfast, a packed lunch, a kiss and an “I Love You” as I went out the door.

In September 2008 we moved to Kerrville in the Texas hill country, to be near her mother.  We still enjoyed dancing, dining, local plays, the Folk Festival, and concerts in San Antonio.  By now, her folks were in their early 80’s and their ranch was becoming too much for them to manage on their own.  So, we helped them prepare to move into town.  They enjoyed living in a senior residential complex for several years.  Lisa’s mother passed away a few years later.  Luckily at that time a new  Veterans Administration apartment complex was being finished, so we started the process to get her step father moved into the new facility.   It took us 6 months to get through the red tape, but we finally got him settled there.  As he reached his early 90’s, his mental status declined, his son and daughter in law felt it was time for him to move closer to them in San Antonio and he was satisfied with that arrangement.

With few ties in the area, Lisa and I started looking around the country for a new home.  We wanted to leave Texas.  In 2018 we decided to move to Jackson, TN.  We were very pleased with our new community and the health care providers in the area.  It's been a joy living in Jackson, even during the Covid pandemic.  We had each other – the best company we could ask for and were very happy.

In late winter of 2022, Lisa wasn’t feeling well.  Our physician treated her for pneumonia, but her symptoms of cough and shortness of breath didn’t resolve.  Several x-rays and a CT scan later over the next couple of months, revealed probable lung cancer.  She was seen by a specialist and was eventually diagnosed with Stage 4 Lung Cancer.  It took us by surprise, she hadn’t smoked in over 30 years. The specialist informed us that 20% of lung cancer patients had never smoked.  Lisa started radiation treatments to reduce the size of the tumors and chemotherapy was planned.  However, after several long heartfelt discussions, she decided she didn’t want to undergo the treatments, she just wanted to be at home and enjoy the remainder of her life with me, without having to deal with the treatment related side effects.  She started with Hospice through West Tennessee Healthcare, they were very compassionate and they helped her remain as comfortable as possible for the next few months.

Lisa was a beautiful woman, with tenderness and compassion for everyone she met, she had a wonderful sense of humor and was full of love. I love her with all my heart and am so proud that she shared these last 40 years with me, hand in hand through our time together.  Myself, my sister Debbie, Debbie’s partner, Art, and our brother, Ed were by her side, every moment until she passed.  We could only take her so far but knew our Heavenly Father would take her the rest of the way, which gave us peace. Her last moments were incredible, her breathing difficulties stopped and as I wiped a tear from her cheek, she opened her eyes wide and looked at each of us individually with so much love and intensity that it gave us all an overwhelming sense of peace, and then she closed her eyes and was gone.

Again, I, Stephen Prince, give to you, the Love of My Life, in Her Memory:

Lisa Jean Prince

November 6, 1953 - May 23, 2023

And May the Lord Bless Us All.

Please Note:

In the pictures, you will see an option to “Express your sympathy with flowers”....Please don’t do this. If you feel that you would like to do something in Lisa’s memory please consider a donation to Hospice West Tennessee Healthcare; https://www.wth.org/services/hope-healing-foundation/

Please don’t feel obligated to do anything at all, but if you do, please consider this organization and select "I would like to dedicate this donation”, “to the memory of Lisa Prince”. Hospice provided and is still providing wonderful care for Lisa and I and many other families going through this very difficult life transition. -Stephen