of Conway, AR

September 27, 1946 - October 8, 2025

Cora Sue (Barnes) Cummins, age 79, of Conway, Arkansas, passed away peacefully at her home on October 8, 2025. She was born on September 27, 1946, in Marshall, Arkansas, the daughter of SMSgt. Winfred and Bonnie Lou Barnes.

Throughout her youth, Cora lived in several locations across the country, following her father's assignments with the United States Air Force. When her father was deployed to Vietnam, she and her mother returned to Marshall to be near family, where she graduated from Marshall High School.

In 1964, Cora entered Arkansas State Teachers College, now the University of Central Arkansas, where she majored in English and Speech. During her college years, she was a member of the dance team and actively participated in stage productions with the drama department. She earned both her bachelor's and master's degrees from UCA, where she also met her future husband, Woodrow Cummins, during their senior year. The couple later married and shared 57 wonderful years together.

Cora dedicated 37 years to teaching in the Conway Public School System, where she taught a variety of high school English courses. She also taught speech, directed school productions, and served as sponsor for the cheerleading and dance teams for many years. After her retirement, she continued her passion for education as a literacy consultant for six years with E2E Educational Consultants, working with schools in the Delta region.
Above all, Cora was a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. Her daughter, Anna Kathleen, and son-in-law, Anthony Efird, who reside in Mena, Arkansas, with their three sons, Jackson (23), Samuel (22), and Connor (20). Cora was an active and loving grandmother who never missed an opportunity to support her grandsons�"whether attending their ballgames, musical productions, or organizing memorable family trips to Gulf Shores. Having been an only daughter and raising one herself, being the grandmother of three boys brought her both joy and adventure.

Cora was a lifelong learner and a woman of many interests. She was a member of the Shakespeare Club, St. Peter's Altar Guild, and the Master Gardeners. An avid reader, she held season tickets at the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville, often attending performances with fellow retired teachers. She also loved to travel and cherished her trips to England, Scotland, and Ireland, exploring the lands that inspired much of the literature she taught throughout her career.

Cora deeply loved her family and treasured her friends, who surrounded her with care and devotion throughout her illness this past year. Her daughter Katie, son-in-law Anthony, brother-in-law Mike, sister-in-law Myrna, along with numerous friends and neighbors, provided extraordinary support during this time.
She is also survived by cousins Nancy Graves, Elaine Blair, Fran Boone, niece Dawn Short, nephew Michael Cummins and a host of extended family members and friends who will forever remember her warmth, intelligence, and grace.

A memorial service will be Monday, October 20, 2025, at 10:30 A.M. at the St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Conway, Arkansas with Father Jason Alexander officiating. A reception will follow the service. Arrangements entrusted to Roller-McNutt Funeral Home in Conway, Arkansas.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to the UCA Foundation Scholarship in care of the Cora Barnes Cummins Scholarship Fund, 201 Donaghey Avenue, Box 4986, Conway, Arkansas 72035.
http://uca.edu/go/cora

 

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