Charlene Taylor

A unique, wise and thoughtful, courageous and determined woman was born in Liberal, Kansas in 1938, and passed away peacefully in Tucson, Arizona, on October 15, 2017. During her lifetime, she earned several degrees and pursued several careers, and made many friends. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in English at the University of Wichita; a Masters of Arts at the University of Illinois; a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois; and a Diploma in English Studies at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. She taught various English Literature classes at the University of Arizona in Tucson in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. After being denied tenure on the ground that she was female, she co-wrote a paper for the Arizona State Legislature on the effect of the Equal Rights Amendment on Arizona Statutes. Arizona then became the first state in the nation to adopt that Amendment. Charlene was proud to work indirectly with then State House Chair Sandra Day O’Connor. Shortly afterwards, Charlene decided to attend law school, and entered Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, DC in 1973. Graduating in 1976 with a J.D. degree, she returned to Tucson, where she was admitted to the Arizona Bar. Again, she worked with the state legislature, this time on toughening child pornography laws. She opened her own law practice in Tucson, and represented many clients in domestic relations, domestic violence, discrimination, and a wide variety of other civil cases. She fought for the disadvantaged, the discriminated-against, and for equal justice for all. She was respected by her colleagues and those on the bench for her hard work on behalf of those less fortunate. Charlene retired from the practice of law in the late 1980’s, and became an artist. She worked in many mediums, including photography; sketching with colored pencils; copper work; and writing poetry. She especially enjoyed capturing the Arizona desert landscapes in her work. Her works adorn the walls in many friends’ homes. Being a voracious reader since childhood, and having a strong belief in the power of reading and education, she had a very natural attraction to libraries and bookstores. She became affiliated with the bookstore, “Footprints of a Gigantic Hound”, and later co-owned and operated the mystery bookstore, “Clues Unlimited”. Later, she opened and operated “Readers’ Oasis”, another independent bookstore, for several years during the early 2000’s. She went above and beyond for authors, especially local authors, and earned the respect and appreciation of Arizona’s literary communities. Always one to value the love of reading, as well as intellect and competence over financial success, she was heartbroken when she was forced to close her bookstores. Yet her avid reading led her to her one true love, Tony Blackwell, of Wales, through their mutual admiration of British author Terry Pratchett. They met through a Terry Pratchett chat room, where Charlene had received an advance copy of “A Hat Full of Sky” and Tony had luckily obtained a copy in Wales, which had been inadvertently put on bookstore shelves two weeks early. They were the only two people in the world, other than the author and editors, who had access to this book at that time! They both read it, found each other, discussed the book, the author, and many other things, resulting in friendship and love, and Tony visiting Charlene in Tucson for several months at a time, starting in 2006. In May 2007, they promised to love each other forever, and they did. Even after Tony was unable to travel to Tucson, they Skyped several times every day. When Charlene went into the hospital (on many occasions), Tony faithfully called every day. They showed their love is unconditional, despite their distance of thousands of miles. During her recent illness, Charlene showed the determination and feistiness she had demonstrated over her decades in whatever she put her mind to do. She also allowed herself to become less than independent, and she trusted friends to help her. She had the companionship of her cats, Emily Dickinson and Victoria Regina, during the last two weeks of her life. Charlene is survived by her beloved, Tony Blackwell, and many friends all over the country who loved her dearly.