Glenda Faye Okoe

Tribute Video

This tribute honors the life and legacy of Glenda Faye Okoe — a woman defined not only by what she said, but by what she carried, built, and sustained.

Obituary

Glenda Faye Okoe was born on April 5, 1945, in Meridian, Mississippi, to Jesse Mae Payton and Albert Marshall. From an early age, she carried a quiet strength and a deep sense of responsibility that would come to define her life.

She later moved to Chicago, Illinois, where she graduated from Wendell Phillips High School and continued her education at Tougaloo College, earning her Bachelor’s Degree in Education in the late 1960s. Committed to growth and excellence, she went on to earn her Master’s Degree in Education from Eastern Illinois University in the mid-1970s.

Glenda devoted her professional life to education, serving as a teacher on Chicago’s South Side at Copernicus Elementary School. She was more than an educator — she was a stabilizing force, a mentor, and a source of guidance for the many students whose lives she touched.

Her faith remained a constant throughout her life. From the late 1980s through the early 2000s, she served faithfully as a Sunday School teacher at New Third Heaven Missionary Baptist Church. She remained devoted to her church community until the passing of its pastor and her mother, who served as the Mother of the Church.

Glenda was a woman who carried responsibility without hesitation. At her home on 7253 South Wolcott in Chicago, she built a foundation for her family where multiple generations lived together under one roof. Following the passing of her sister, Patricia Reese, in 1989, Glenda opened her home and her life to her sister’s children — Bridgette Trussell, her niece; Brooke Trussell, her niece; Christopher Trussell, her nephew; Bryant Trussell, her nephew; and Patricia Reese, her niece — providing them with stability, care, and unwavering support.

She was preceded in death by her mother, Jesse Mae Payton; her father, Albert Marshall; and her sister, Patricia Reese.

She leaves behind her beloved son, Abubakar Adjei Okoe II, who carries forward her strength, values, and legacy, along with her brother, Robert James Trussell, her nieces and nephews, extended family, and countless students whose lives were shaped by her presence.

Glenda Faye Okoe passed away on November 30, 2009.

Her life was defined not by what she said, but by what she did — quietly, consistently, and without fail.

She built a foundation that still stands, and a legacy that continues through those she loved and cared for.