03/08/2026
We had the honor and privilege of providing Nurse Honor Guard services yesterday for our departed sister nurse Ms. Alice Deason.
Alice Deason Obituary
Alice Virginia Sims Deason, 71, of Birmingham, Alabama, passed away peacefully at her daughter's home in Saraland, Alabama, on February 8, 2026, after complications related to Parkinson's disease.
Alice was the seventh of ten children born to John Lewis Sims III and Annie Laurie Littlejohn Sims. She grew up in Birmingham and was raised in First United Methodist Church of Birmingham, where faith and family formed her foundation.
As a young woman, Alice loved music and community. She sang in the Shades Valley High School choir as a Valley Singer and spent summers at Camp Winnataska, first as a camper and later as a counselor. She played outside for hours with her siblings and neighborhood friends, roller skating on uneven sidewalks and exploring the Norwood neighborhood where she grew up.
She graduated from Mobile Infirmary School of Nursing in 1974 and began her career as a Registered Nurse soon after. She spent 45 years in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Brookwood Baptist Medical Center in Birmingham, Alabama, caring for premature and critically ill newborns and supporting their families during some of life's most fragile moments. The NICU was not only her life's work but also the place where she formed some of her closest and longest-standing friendships. She shared kindness with everyone she met and was calm, patient, and an exceptional NICU nurse, mentor, and friend.
Her greatest joy was her family.
Alice raised five daughters who were her heart. They loved her deeply, and her love for them never wavered. She was their constant. She worked hard, worried often, and carried more than she ever said out loud. She kept watch, set boundaries, and made sure her girls were cared for, protected, and prepared.
The beach was part of her life long before she had daughters, and she made sure it became part of theirs. She would load everyone into the car and drive from Birmingham to the Gulf because going each summer mattered and was a family tradition. What began as trips with her girls grew into annual gatherings for her entire family. She was an early riser every day and loved taking early morning beach walks, sitting on the porch, soaking in the sounds and scents of the beach while being surrounded by family, love, and laughter. In addition to an annual beach trip, she loved traveling with her family, and trips to Alaska and the U.S. Virgin Islands were among her favorites.
Being present was not optional to her. She was there when her grandchildren were born, often giving them their first bath. She was in the stands at track meets and ball games, in the audience at plays and musical performances, and at cheerleading events, beauty pageants, recitals, and graduations. She showed up to support, love, and cheer for her family.
She was steady, devoted, and fiercely loving. She was Alice to many, Mom to her girls, and Nana to her grandchildren. She will be deeply missed until they are reunited in Heaven.
She is survived by her daughters, Dana Deason (Ryan Radford), Hollye Massey (John Massey), Jennifer Deason (Erin Thompson), Laurie Vickery (Dale Vickery), and Allison Glover (Skip Glover); her grandchildren, Mary Alys Tubbs (Jonathan Tubbs), Micah Glover (Courtney Meadows), Kara McCulloch (Carson Smith), Parker Deason, Mason Glover, Cooper Deason, Keely Massey, Jake Glover, Ryder Deason, Jackson Vickery, Spencer Deason, Samuel Vickery, Simon Glover, and Bo Glover; her great-grandson, James Tubbs; her daughters' father, Dan Deason; Brent McCulloch, father of Mary Alys and Kara; her siblings, John "Jack" Sims, Kenneth Sims, Jane Massengale, Nancy Donahoo, Dan Sims, and Robert Sims; and her sisters-in-law, Paula White and Debbie Hays.
She was preceded in death by her beloved granddaughter, Georgia Evelyn Glover; her mother, Annie Laurie Littlejohn Sims; her father, John Lewis Sims III; her brother, James Henry Croggon Solley Jr.; her sister, Anne Marie Schilleci; her sister, Martha Ellen King; her mother-in-law, Dorris Evelyn Hearn Deason; and her father-in-law, Earnest N. Deason.
Alice was lovingly cared for by her daughters, Laurie and Jennifer, in Saraland, Alabama, in her final days. The family is deeply grateful for the compassionate care provided by homeRN Mobile Bay and SAAD Hospice.
A Celebration of Life will be held on March 7, 2026. Details will be shared separately.
