Clarice was the eldest of 3 girls born to Coy Lee and Grace Lucille West. She held a special place in her heart for her Grandmother West who raised her and her 2 sisters upon the early death of her father. On May 26, 1949, Clarice married the love of her life James "Jim" Collins in Monticello, Arkansas. Jim's mother Ollie Bell "adopted" her like another daughter into the family. She developed a special bond with her "sisters" Ruth and Marceil, giving love and support and shared confidences to each other. Jim and Clarice moved to Pine Bluff, Arkansas where she learned bookkeeping at a department store, and worked as a telephone switchboard operator. In the early years they moved around a lot. But in 1962, they settled down in Houston, Texas with their 4 young children (7 years between the oldest and youngest!). Clarice added to the family income by textbook clerking at an elementary school and transferring to financial clerk at a high school in HISD. After moving to Cypress, Texas, she opened a frame shop, Northwest Frames & Art Gallery close to their home. Clarice ran the shop and Jim helped with framing after working at the Houston Chronicle. She enjoyed interacting with her customers and working with beautiful artwork. Upon retirement, they moved to Lake Livingston where they became involved with the community water company. They built their third and last house outside Montgomery, Texas. Sadly, Jim became ill and Clarice nursed him 24/7 until his death in February 2013. Then in 2020, Clarice suffered a stroke and advanced dementia leading to her death on December 20, 2020.