Tammy Birsen Underwood, 63, passed away on July 31, 2025, in Alamogordo, New Mexico. She was born on August 30, 1961, in Detroit, Michigan to Richard Earl Underwood and Ayla Ener Underwood.  

With heavy hearts and eternal love, we announce the passing of Tammy. After a courageous battle with cancer, Tammy left this life exactly as she lived it on her own terms, with unwavering strength, fierce independence, and enduring grace.

Tammy was a brilliant artist, a gifted writer, and above all, a survivor. Life presented her with many challenges, but she met each one with courage and defiance, never allowing adversity to define her. She was a force of nature, bold, passionate, and impossible to ignore. Her words had the power to cut through silence, and her art gave voice to emotions that words often failed to express. She saw the world in colors and textures others often overlooked, transforming pain into beauty and truth into expression.

Tammy was fiercely protective of those she loved. She taught her children not only how to survive, but how to stand tall with integrity. She was a warrior with a poet’s soul, deep, complex, and unforgettable. To know Tammy was to witness raw truth, raw power, and raw love.

Tammy is survived by many who loved her dearly and whose lives were forever changed by her presence. Survivors Include her loving fiancé of 25 years, Freddy Padilla and his daughter, Angela Padilla-Cardiel; her beloved mother, Ayla Hightower; her daughter, Amber Underwood and Amber’s fiancé, Frank Stroehmer; her son, Brandon Hightower and his wife, Rachel Hightower; her sister, Wendy Muniz; her brother, Rick Attila (Ricky) Underwood and fiance, Laura Lea Hawkins; niece,  Ayse Muniz; nephew, Ricky Muniz and husband, Gavin Williams; her cherished grandchildren, Kenzie Hightower, Jeremiah D'Arezzo, Drake D'Arezzo, Julie D'Arezzo; niece, Megan Valenzuela and her husband, Henry Valenzuela along with their children, Nicholas Valenzuela, Jeremiah Valenzuela, Rhiannon Valenzuela, Xaniel Valenzuela, Max Valenzuela.

She was preceded in death by her father, Richard Earl (aka Dick or Woody) Underwood; stepfather, Leroy Hightower; her grandson, Elijah Freedom Hightower.

A memorial will be announced at a later date. 

The Underwood family has entrusted their loved one to the care of PCS Direct Cremation Service.