Tracey Grow

Tracey Marie Grow (born Kathleen Sue Riley), daughter of the late Martin and Norma (Gillingham) Riley, was born June 25, 1953, in Sandusky, Ohio, and passed away April 6, 2020, in Mercy Hospital in Springfield, Missouri. She was 66 years, 9 months, and 12 days of age.

Tracey grew up and went to school in California. At age 18, she married David Grow and two sons were born to this union, James David and Christopher Michael. David was in the Marine Corp, and this took them to the states of Virginia, Florida, Washington, and North Carolina.
After David was honorably discharged from the United States Marine Corp, they lived in Idaho before moving back to California, where they resided in Ridgecrest to raise their family.

Tracey became a ceramicist and started working with her mother. After her children left home she took the opportunity to learn to drive a semi. She drove professionally for Prime, Inc. for three years. During a family crisis, she ended her trucking career and moved to Missouri to raise her grandson, Charles. After moving to Missouri, she opened a ceramics shop with her former trucking partner, Buddy. They called it Tracey’s Ceramics Plus.

In 2007, she lost her sight, only retaining about 2% vision in her right eye. She would do her best to never let you know she had a problem. Tracey was extremely independent and stubborn, never giving up on her ceramics. While gradually losing more vision, she needed magnifiers and cameras to help her do even simple tasks in the shop.

Tracey had a love for animals and raised many dogs and cats over the years. She even had a horse she was never able to ride. Near the end, she focused on her animals and Charles, encouraging him to find something to do with his life.

Tracey is survived by her husband, David, two sons, James and his wife, Betty, and Christopher, five grandchildren, James Michael, Jeremy, Natalie, Adam, and Charles “Chaz”, two sisters, Sandra and Linda, and other relatives and friends who will miss her very much.