Christine Harvey

Christine "Chris" Haskin Hicks Harvey, 75, of Fayetteville, TX, passed away peacefully on June 1, 2025, after a courageous battle with dementia. A devoted mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, cousin, godmother and friend, Chris's warmth, humor, and boundless curiosity touched countless lives.

 Born on July 2, 1949, at Ellington Air Force Base in Houston, TX, to Robert Raymond Haskin and Helon Christine Humes Haskin, Chris was the second of four children. Her father's Air Force career took the family across the globe, igniting Chris's lifelong love of travel and adventure. She was baptized and confirmed in her faith. A proud graduate of Ingleside High School (1967), Chris excelled in basketball and softball, her competitive spirit matched only by her knack for making teammates laugh. She loved waterskiing (on a single ski), once famously steering a friend into a pier, leaving them with splinters and a story she recounted with a mischievous grin. Her passion for landscaping bloomed in high school while working at a local nursery in Ingleside, where she discovered her gift for nurturing plants and creating beauty.

 At Texas A&M University, where she earned her Floriculture degree in 1974, Chris began a relationship with the nursery owner's son, Terry Hicks. They married after college and moved to Kentucky, where their son, Kit, was born. Chris balanced motherhood with her role as a flight attendant, where her charm and quick wit brightened countless flights. After returning to Texas in the early 1980s, she worked at a Better Homes and Gardens store in Victoria, TX, designing landscapes and caring for plants with her signature creativity. She particularly enjoyed frosting Christmas trees in December, turning them into sparkling winter wonders with a smile that lit up the store.

 In the late 1980s, Chris and her sister, Michelle, returned to school together to earn their teaching degrees, a testament to their close bond and shared determination. Chris was then offered the opportunity to complete her teaching certificate in England, where she traveled for 3-4 months with her mother, Helon. Together, they explored iconic sites like Stonehenge and Big Ben while creating cherished memories that fueled Chris's adventurous spirit.

 Chris became a beloved Earth Science teacher at Giddings Middle School, later moving to the Knox Learning Center, where she provided one-on-one instruction to help students accelerate their high school learning, enabling them to graduate early or obtain a GED. She retired in 2012 after 22 years. In her science lab at Giddings, with its big blacktop tables, Chris brought learning to life by introducing animals like iguanas, rabbits, and birds. Her favorite, a rabbit named Thumper-inspired by her love for Disney movies-roamed free, delighting students by nibbling on their shoelaces. At the Knox Learning Center, she filled her classroom with multiple large fish tanks, creating a vibrant, life-filled environment that captivated her students and sparked their curiosity. In the 1990s, she supplemented her teaching income by managing the Giddings city pool, where she also taught swim lessons, sharing her love for water with the community.

 On March 29, 2014, Chris married her Ingleside classmate and sweetheart, Charlie "CH" Harvey. Together, they danced through life, twirling at local dances and savoring quiet moments watching westerns. Chris's love for horses, owls, Coca-Cola, and chicken tenders was legendary-she'd happily dine anywhere as long as chicken tenders were on the menu. Her passion for Disney movies shone through in traditions of watching every new release with her son, Kit, and later her grandchildren, AJ, Devon, and Sydney. CH even had a car customized like Lightning McQueen, although originally done with his son, David, it was nod to their shared love for "Cars" & going fast. As it was a Ford Mustang Cobra. Above all, Chris cherished the beach, where she felt closest to the world's rhythm, and when the coast was out of reach, a sparkling pool was her perfect haven. She also treasured the front or back porch of her country home in Fayetteville, where she'd lose herself in a good book, surrounded by the cool hilltop breeze.

 Chris is survived by her son, Kit Hicks, and his wife, Paula; grandchildren AJ, Devon, and Sydney Hicks; stepson David Harvey; mother-in-law, Mary Alice Hicks; brothers Robert "Mench" Haskin and James "Tad" Haskin; nieces KC, Randi, and Rochelle; nephew Rob; and her "adopted daughter" Stephanie Schulze, her husband Cody, and their daughters Hadley and Karsyn; along with many cherished relatives and friends. She was preceded in death by her husband, Charlie "CH" Harvey; parents, Robert and Helon Haskin; sister, Michelle Haskin Spurger; Kits father, Terry Hicks; and numerous loved ones.

Special thanks to the nurses and aides at Hudson Creek Alzheimer's Care Center and Acara Hospice nurses and aides Abbie, Casey, Jazzmyn, Tiffany, and other staff and volunteers that showed love and care for Chris throughout the last year.

A memorial service will be held on Monday, July 7, 2025, at 3:00 pm at First Methodist Church in Giddings located at 279 East Monroe St. Giddings, Texas.

 In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Chris's memory to:

the Dementia Society of America (www.dementiasociety.org/donate)

OR

the Susan G Koman Breast Cancer Foundation (www.komen.org/how-to-help/donate/memorial-giving)

Chris's legacy lives on in the gardens she tended, the students she inspired, and the laughter she shared. Her family will forever cherish her infectious giggle and the way she made every moment bloom, whether by the sea, a pool, or on her breezy porch.