Elizabeth S. Colyer

Elizabeth Schell Colyer, born January 11, 1920, in Jacksonville, Florida, to the late Wilkie Jay and Florine Powell Schell, died December 5, 2025, in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, after a brief illness. Elizabeth spent most of her childhood in Jacksonville. After the death of her father, her family spent two years in White Springs, Florida. She attended Columbia High School in Lake City before returning to Jacksonville, where she graduated from Robert E. Lee High School. She attended Florida State College for Women (now FSU) where she was a member of Chi Omega Fraternity.

In December of 1941, she married G. Clifton Colyer, also a Jacksonville native, following the bombing of Pearl Harbor. After the war and Clifton’s completion of his degree from the University of Florida, they moved to Anniston, Alabama, where he started his own construction company. There they raised their family and were active in church, business, and social life.

Liz served as a Gray Lady at Fort McClellan during the Korean Conflict and volunteered for many years as a Pink Lady at Anniston Memorial Hospital, now Northeast Alabama Medical Center. She taught adult Sunday School for 30 years at First Presbyterian Church and Parker Memorial Baptist Church. She was a member of Revelers and the Euterpean Study Club. She was a volunteer with Meals on Wheels until she moved to Vicar’s Landing in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, at the age of 89. At the time of her move, she was the oldest living and longest serving member of the Anniston Country Club Women’s Golf Association. Among her other interests, Liz loved to dance, read, and play bridge.

While living at Vicar’s Landing, Liz enjoyed volunteering in the library and at the gift shop, the Boutique. She participated in various activities, including line dancing and bingo, and was a regular attendant at Evening Prayer. At age 102, she proudly held the distinction of being the oldest person to have a driver’s license renewed in St. John’s County, Florida.

Liz attended Sunday school and church all her life, but by the time she moved to Vicar’s Landing, her hearing loss was so profound that she no longer attended church but listened to her favorite minister every Sunday on TV. She was a devout Christian from cradle to grave.

In addition to her husband and parents, Liz was predeceased by her two sons, G. Clifton Colyer, Jr. and Wilkie Schell Colyer; and her son-in-law, Charles A. New, Jr. She was also predeceased by her brothers, Wilkie Jay Schell, Jr., John Powell Schell, and George Frederick Schell. She is survived by her daughter, Robin Colyer New of Spartanburg, SC; her daughter-in-law, Gay Simmons Colyer of Atlanta, GA; her grandchildren, G. Clifton Colyer III and his wife Sonia, Charles A. New III and his wife Catherine, Wilkie S. Colyer, Jr. and his wife Cameron, and Elizabeth Colyer Thompson and her husband Maitland; three great granddaughters, Kate, Peyton, and Wesley; and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Graveside services at Highland Cemetery in Anniston, Alabama, will be held Saturday, January 24, at 11:00 with Dr. Mack Amis officiating. Visitation will follow the service at Anniston Country Club.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a memorial to the charity of one’s choice.