Debbie Maxwell, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and friend to many, succumbed to cancer and passed away peacefully at home on October 27, 2021, surrounded by her family, music, flowers, and prayers.

Debbie was born Deborah Kay Reynolds in 1952 to Edna and Jimmie Reynolds in Springfield, IL. The oldest of 16 grandchildren, she was beloved by aunts, uncles, and numerous cousins. Described by her mother as an "angel," she was a doting big sister to Coni and Lenny.

Debbie graduated from Springfield High School in 1970. In 1977, she joined Harmony First, a women's barbershop chorus, where she met the director and the love of her life, Phil Maxwell. When they married on December 3, 1977, Debbie became a stepmom to Norman and Bruce. The Maxwell family soon grew with the births of daughters, Gretchen and Beth. Over the years, the Maxwell family hosted 20 exchange students from various countries, and in 1994 they welcomed a Russian exchange student Dasha (Daria), who became a part of their family.

Although she had many jobs, Debbie's true calling was loving and caring for children. When the girls were in elementary school, Debbie went back to college and, in 1990, earned her Bachelor of Science in Education from MacMurray College in Jacksonville, IL. She taught elementary school for ten years at Harvard Park and Owen Marsh. She was a mother figure to many, including friends, neighbors, students, church family, and anyone needing nurturing.

Growing up, Debbie attended Southside Christian Church. As an adult, she was an active member of Elliott Avenue Baptist Church and later Central Baptist Church in Springfield, IL. She loved serving others and taught Sunday school, volunteered for a crisis pregnancy center, and participated in Christian Bible Fellowship and women's circle. Debbie cooked and served for Wednesday night church dinners and hosted a yearly dinner and reception for the Millikin University Choir.

Debbie loved music and sang in many groups through the years. She sang in a barbershop quartet, church choirs (directed by Phil), the Maxwell family quartet, and the Illinois Symphony Chorus. For 26 years, she participated in the Fellowship of American Baptist Musicians conference at Green Lake, WI, and dearly loved the place and her Green Lake family. She and Phil held season tickets for the Illinois Symphony Orchestra, and she enjoyed art shows, museums, and theatrical performances. She embraced all the arts and passed her love of art and culture to her children. Traveling and exploring things made Debbie happy, and she enjoyed many trips, both in the US and abroad.

Debbie was an avid gardener and loved her flowers, birds, gazing balls, fairy lights, whirligigs, pinwheels, and wind chimes. She found joy in collecting beautiful things and selecting thoughtful gifts for others. Debbie's spiritual gift was hospitality, and her door was always open to visits from family, friends, and neighbors. She treasured baking with her children and grandchildren. Around Christmas, she made cookie trays and delivered them to the post office workers. There was no limit to the amount of love and friendship she shared. She had a warm and fun presence that would light up a room: her smile, cute outfits, humor, and genuine joy in interacting with people. When she spoke with anyone, be it a friend or someone she just met, she had a way of making each person feel special, seen, and loved. A lifetime lover of animals, she had many pets. Her favorite canine companion was her Goldendoodle, Katie, who brought true joy to the last two years of her life.

Debbie is survived by her husband, Phil; daughters, Gretchen Phillips, Beth Maxwell, and Dasha (Daria) LaFave; stepsons, Norman Maxwell and Bruce Maxwell; mother, Edna Reynolds; siblings, Coni Rogers and Lenny Reynolds; and Janette Bolin, her best friend of over forty years. She was grandmother to Candice Maxwell (Bruce), Veronica Rodriguez, Emily Maxwell, and El Maxwell (Norman), Amelia Phillips and Anneliese Phillips (Gretchen), Megan Heinemann and Henry LaFave (Dasha). She was beloved "Auntie D" to Evan Stevens and Colin Rogers (Coni); a godmother to Dawnita and Christlynn Jackson; and is survived by many aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and cousins.

A memorial service to celebrate Debbie's life will be held at Central Baptist Church (501 S. 4 ^th Street, Springfield, IL) on Friday, December 3, on what would have been Phil and Debbie's 44 ^th wedding anniversary. The family will receive visitors at 10 AM. The memorial service will begin at 11 AM, followed by a luncheon in the Fellowship Hall. Celebration of Life RSVP: http://evite.me/yf8E3JSPFx

Donations can be made in honor of Debbie to the American Cancer Society ( https://www.cancer.org/ ).