Olive Faye (Prough) Hodges

Olive “Faye” Prough Hodges (August 10, 1940- October 27, 2022) lived a fruitful, productive and selfless life. She put others first and left a lasting legacy in many ways. Her husband, Joe, and she had servants’ hearts and loved the simple and dignified act of hard work and diligence and together they taught their daughter, Hollye, to pursue life with integrity, loyalty, compassion and strong work ethic.  In a few words, black coffee, high heels, impeccable style and the best homemade dinner rolls you’ve ever tasted describe Faye.

Faye was born in Hobart, Oklahoma and raised on a family farm just south of Gotebo, Oklahoma. Faye loved her farm-girl roots and was always proud to say that Gotebo, Oklahoma was her hometown. She graduated from Gotebo High School before enrolling in Southwestern Oklahoma State University. She excelled at SWOSU and received a bachelors degree in Education in 1961.

Faye prayed about her next steps after college, and it became clear to her that God’s path for her led straight to Amarillo, Texas.  She began her teaching career by teaching 2nd grade at Sunrise Elementary. In her early years of living, working and being part of the Amarillo community, she met the love of her life, Joseph Hodges. The pair had an instant connection and they married in April of 1962. Faye was a visionary and had incredible leadership and organizational skills. Faye loved the public library system and all that it meant for the students of Amarillo ISD. In 1979, she received her Masters in Education/Library Science from West Texas State University. In 1980, Faye was named to be the Library Coordinator for the Amarillo Public Schools.

Together, Joe and Faye had an insatiable entrepreneurial spirit. They both worked their “day jobs,” Faye in education and Joe working for Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad, and in their spare time they built a truly remarkable small business. Their vision was to create a mobile home park for senior citizens—a place where seniors could come together, enjoy community and economic stability in beautiful surroundings. And they did it…literally, from the ground up.  They worked long and often physically and mentally demanding days for 40 years creating and perfecting their vision—County Estates Retirement Community. Ask anyone who saw them run their business: it was a remarkable labor of love.

Faye and her daughter, Hollye, were best friends. Faye modeled for Hollye how to be courageous, ambitious and ready to tackle anything AND to always do it with grace and class.  Together, Faye and Hollye laughed, cried, labored, celebrated, consoled and made a lifetime of memories. At Christmas time, they made and decorated sugar cookies that they then delivered to friends and family far and wide. On Sundays, they went to Dillard’s to “shop till you drop” (as long as the Cowboys weren’t playing; they stayed home and supported Joe when the Cowboys were playing). Often, the pair would make quick trips to the family farm in Gotebo because Faye loved Gotebo and Hollye loved road trips with Faye. When Hollye moved away from home, they remained a source of daily strength and wisdom for each other. Faye defined grace and class and Hollye and her children will steward those traits of Faye.

Joe, Faye, Hollye and Hollye’s husband, Brent were also best friends. Joe and Faye taught Hollye and Brent entrepreneurship, work-ethic, and gave them countless practical tools. Hollye and Brent loved getting to help Joe and Faye grow their business.  Joe and Faye taught Hollye and Brent to have “day jobs” as a lawyer and dentist and also to have a dream of building a business together.  From about 2007-2015, the foursome worked side-by-side at Country Estates. Hollye and Brent will always cherish those special years of jack-of-all-trades work with Joe (paving, concrete, plumbing, electrical, and on and on) and building the Country Estates brand with Faye (landscaping, holiday decorations and community events, to name a few).

Faye was over the moon about having four grand kids. She never hesitated to drop what she was doing to spend time with them and to make them feel special. She was proud of all that they did and all that she knows they will be. In a perfect world, she and Joe would be able to continue to teach their four grand kids all about strong work ethic, dreaming big and building something bigger than themselves.  Joe and Faye ran out of time, but their lessons and love live on in Hollye’s family of 6.

Faye was predeceased by her husband Joseph Hardy Hodges; her parents, A.J. “Jim” Prough and Evella Prough.

She is survived by her daughter Hollye and husband Brent and their four children Kage Hardy(14), Kane Kent(11), Katherine Olive(11) and Koen Anthony(8); a brother James T. Prough and wife Linda Prough; a sister Donna Kay Franklin; and many beloved nieces and nephews.