Ada Kate Spradlin

Ada Kate Spradlin, 85, passed away peacefully Thursday, March 21, 2024, at NHC-Tullahoma with her niece and caregiver, Angela, by her side. After suffering a stroke in 2022 which left her immobilized, Kate never lost her passion for life or her sense of humor.  

Visitation will be held at Luff-Bowen Funeral Home in Waverly, TN on Friday, April 5 from 4 pm-8 pm. The funeral will be held on Saturday, April 6 at 11 am.  Her great nephew Kendall Ray will officiate, with the burial to follow at Meadowlawn Cemetery in McEwen, TN.

Kate was born in Sylvia, TN in Dickson County on September 1, 1938, to Edward Rhodes and Georgia Ragan Spradlin. As a child, she enjoyed cooking, sewing, looking after her younger sister Sue, and playing on the farm with her brothers, Jimmy and Ragan (Ed).

Kate attended Charlotte High School in Dickson County.  Following her graduation in 1956, she moved to Nashville where she worked for various doctors before becoming a Surgical Tech at Baptist Hospital. Never one to settle into complacency, Kate later attended nursing school at Belmont University while working full-time.  After graduating in 1987, she would continue to work at Baptist Hospital as a Surgical Nurse.  She would later go to work in the same position at Southern Hills, where after many years she would retire, all while never ceasing to bring a smile to her colleagues’ faces with her quick wit and dry sense of humor.

When she wasn’t at work saving lives, Kate enjoyed working in her garden, preparing meals for her family (often with ingredients she grew herself), knitting, cheering on her great nephews and nieces in their sports, and watching her Atlanta Braves win ball games.   Kate will always be remembered for her faithful love and support of her family, always willing to go the extra mile to help a family member in need, as well as her sense of humor and entertaining stories.  

Kate is survived by her nephews, David Spradlin, Darrell Spradlin, Lance Spradlin, Michael Ray (Christy), Jeffrey Ray (Beth), her nieces, Donna Burns (Greg), Delinda Elliott (Matthew), and Angela Ray; Great nephews, Blake Sissom (Becca), Kendall Ray, James Robert Burns, Thomas Burns, Landin Burns, Dalton Ray (Amanda), Gavin Elliott, Jonah Elliott, Jett Elliott, and Jake Elliott;  Great Nieces, Anniston Colston (Hayden), Carmen Calvert (Ethan), Sophie Ray, and Rachel Holder (Bryson), along with several great-great nephews, Carter, Wyatt, Owen, Easton, Cole, Gatlin, Titus, and one on the way.

In addition to her parents, Kate is preceded in death by her brothers James “Jimmy” Spradlin and Ragan “Ed” Spradlin, her sister Sue Ann Spradlin Ray, and sisters-in-law Elizabeth Spradlin and Mildred Spradlin.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to a charity of your choice.

The family would also like to give a special thank you to the staff of NHC-Tullahoma and Caris Healthcare-Tullahoma for the love and care they provided over the past year and a half.