Violet Ferguson Lawless

Violet M. Ferguson Lawless passed away December 1, 2017 in Albuquerque. She was born to Oscar and Edna Kerry Leslie in Pittsburg, Oklahoma, on May 16, 1917. The family moved to Glorieta, NM, when she was 4 years old. Violet and her mother moved to Santa Fe so she could attend high school. While going to high school, she worked at JC Penney's. She met Roland Ferguson while she lived in Espanola and they married in 1937. Roland and Violet started and ran the collection branch of Merchant's Credit Service. Later, Violet was the credit manager for St. Vincent's Hospital for about 20 years. Violet was active in Nell's Service Club from high school until 2008. She belonged to and was active in the First Christian Church and later St. John's Methodist Church. Violet belonged to Zonta International (a professional businesswoman's organization, Phi Sigma Alpha Sorority, the Santa Fe Garden Club, was on the governor's board for Senior Citizens, was president of Parents without Partners, and worked her way through the ranks of White Shrine to become the Worthy High Priestess. She was a junior master duplicate bridge player and loved to play Skip-Bo, Canasta and other card games. Going to the casino to play the slot machines and have lunch was a treat for Violet. She loved to travel and she and Bob, her second husband, were world-wide travelers. Compassionate, loving, and giving person, both of her time and her material possessions, describes Violet. She was an outstanding business woman, a wonderful mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and a caring wife to both of her husbands. Violet was preceded in death by her parents, her sisters, Angelene Hunter and Evelyn Kiker, her brother, Birge Leslie, her first husband, Roland M. Ferguson, and her second husband, Robert Lawless. She is survived by her daughter, Dolores Borland (Pat) of Albuquerque, her son, Roland Ferguson (Georgia) of Sedona, AZ, grandchildren, Mark Borland, Pamela Kennedy (Tom), and Tim Borland (Natalie) and six great-grandchildren. Thank you to all of her caregivers and medical assistants at ClareBridge of Brookdale Tramway Ridge and to Hospice of New Mexico. Celebration of Life will be at St. John's Methodist Church at 11:00 am on Saturday, December 16, 2017.