Alexandra "Alex" Grace Blackwell

Our sweet beautiful Alexandra (Alex) Grace Blackwell, age 16, of Tucker passed away Wednesday, September 13, 2017.

Alex was born October 29, 2000 and is survived by her parents, Kim and Richard Blackwell and her sister, Grayson; her grandparents, Tootsie and Joe Kilpatrick, and MaryLee Goggins, and James Blackwell; her great grandmother, Gertrude Raper; her aunt and uncles, Erin and Marcel Barre, and Tim Blackwell, and Chris Blackwell; and her many first cousins, Katherine and Benjamin and Madeleine and William Barre, and Cephia Blackwell; dozens of close second and third cousins including local residents Terry, Kristin, Rachel and Ashley Fair; many more extended family members; and many many loving friends.

Alex was an 11th grade Junior at Greater Atlanta Christian School where she excelled as an honor student. She was a part of some clubs (JH Drama, Beta Club, Service Club) and was noted for many achievements, recently the President’s Volunteer Service Award. Her hospitality & responsibility was noted by teachers & staff to provide tours of the campus, assist with chapel, & create school trip videos.

Growing up she was always a happy vivacious and energetic child. Always smiling & laughing & funny. Happiness and Achievement is what we remember in elementary school. Alex was usually the person to help others and take the lead. She rose to every challenge and received almost every award possible in elementary school – Principal Honors Awards, Student Council VP, Literary Guild Master, Friendly Helper, Safety Patrol, Talent Shows, Drama Shows, and not to mention making her mark with field day.

She loved providing service to others at school, at home, in the neighborhood with Girl Scouts, and at church which she loved as she became a full member in 2013 and participated in as many activities as possible – Choir, Handbells, VBS, LAMB, Sunday School, Youth, Acolyting, Snax Sacks, and even loved to help clean the sanctuary with her beloved grandmother.

Her love was sports, & that is where Alex thrived as a skilled & capable athlete. As a child, she did it all, and in a fun and goofy way as she loved to make people smile. Ballet, Tap, Gymnastics, Karate where she broke a board, Basketball- the perfect picker, Snow skiing, Water skiing, and Swim team every summer she could. But Soccer was her primarily love growing up and was a fierce key player on many club select teams from TYSA to GSA to CFC, in addition to playing her GAC school varsity soccer team. She even earned her certification to referee local rec soccer games. In the last 2 years, she added Softball to her favorite sports as she was quick to steal bases & bonded as a sister with her teammates.

Alex had many aspirations, and wanted to be an orthopedic surgeon, and was already learning this trade by the school of hard knocks after mostly recovering as a toddler from Blounts disease on her legs and joints, and then later continued with daily pains starting in her ankles that spread upwards which also made it difficult to play favorite sports with these injuries but still played key positions as much as she could. Every coach loved Alex and saw her dedicated perseverance with modest maturity. Many coaches made a point of saying that even injured, Alex came to practice every day with a big smile on her face and the greatest attitude, and that we don’t really know someone until we see how they handle adversity and they had the chance to see a young woman of real character and class and they all loved coaching her. She was determined to beat her pain so she fearlessly opted for 2 separate and painful tibia surgeries earlier this year that had a doubly long and painful recovery in a wheel chair for almost 6 months with many more months of PT in order to get back to full strength to try to get back as fast as she could to get back to do what she loved & play on the field where she was most at home. Through it all, she was strong and resilient & handled an enormous amount of pain with absolutely amazing grace.

Alex loved her family, deeply and truly – her mom, dad, and especially her sister Grayson. With a big extended family, Alex loved having them close by, as she would often help out at her grandparents’ house and visit with her great grandmother and meet up with cousins. She filled our hearts with lovingly warmth & compassion. Every event and holiday was always fun with all the families and lots of games and her laughter. Alex will be deeply missed by all who knew her kind and beautiful spirit. We were grateful to be a part of her life, & will remember her always, & honor her memory in days to come.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Greater Atlanta Christian School scholarship fund in honor of Alex. Link to Alex’s scholarship donation page - https://www.greateratlantachristian.org/page/giving/memorial-donation

An open Visitation will be held Friday evening from 6:00 to 9:00 pm at AS Turner & Sons Funeral Home.

A private Internment for family and close friends graveside service will be held Saturday morning, September 16 at the Arlington Memorial Park in Sandy Springs. Pall Bearers are Tim Blackwell, Terry Fair, Marcel Barre, Benjamin Barre, Katherine Barre, Madeleine Barre, Kristin Fair, Rachel Fair, Ashley Fair, William Barre, and Cephia Blackwell.

An open Memorial service will be held at 2:00 pm Saturday, September 16 at Embry Hills United Methodist Church. Reception to follow with slideshow and food donated by GAC families.

Please feel free to share any memories, stories, and photos with the family. Email or submit online through www.asturner.com.